


To Build A Home

by bethanyisinjail



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Anxiety, Au where Regulus runs away with Sirius, Brotherly Bonding, Childhood Trauma, F/F, F/M, Fluff and Angst, Found Family, Good Regulus Black, Hurt/Comfort, Just in general, M/M, Not Canon Compliant, Recovery, Regulus Black Needs a Hug, Regulus Black-centric, Slow Burn, Very not canon, What Have I Done, it's gotten out of hand, so much of it, so so much of it, very self-indulgent, well he's always good but
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-02-11
Updated: 2021-03-18
Packaged: 2021-03-18 06:02:25
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 99
Words: 252,042
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29363703
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/bethanyisinjail/pseuds/bethanyisinjail
Summary: Sirius has always promised Regulus he'd never leave him alone. No matter what their mother did, or what she said, or how many curses she threw, he'd always be there for him. And Sirius keeps his promises.Even if 'there' isn't 12 Grimmauld Place."Sirius drags his trunk to him, but Regulus just shakes his head, “This isn’t smart.”“Maybe it’s not,” Sirius reasons, “But it’s safer than anything you’re getting here. Come with me, Reg.”Regulus contemplates it a moment before he bites the bullet and grabs his trunk from Sirius."
Relationships: Marlene McKinnon/Dorcas Meadowes, Regulus Black & Andromeda Black Tonks, Regulus Black & James Potter, Regulus Black & Narcissa Black Malfoy, Regulus Black & Nymphadora Tonks, Regulus Black & Original Character(s), Regulus Black & Sirius Black, Regulus Black/Original Female Character(s), Sirius Black & Andromeda Black Tonks, Sirius Black & James Potter, Sirius Black/Remus Lupin
Comments: 140
Kudos: 308





	1. Where Now?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hi!! so i wrote a canon fic about sirius getting kicked out, but in doing so i grew such a love for regulus i had to write one where he got his freedom too. good news, i do not care about canon in the slightest, so if something seems wrong it probably is, i'm writing I'll do what makes me happy
> 
> this is largely in reg's pov, but it shifts occasionally so it's not tagged that. it's completely reg-centric tho, so i'm hoping this reaches the extremely niche group of people who care about him as much as i do
> 
> hope this scratches that hyperspecific fic interest!!
> 
> ((title song: 'To Build A Home' by The Cinematic Orchestra. i totally recommend it.))
> 
> cw: child abuse

Regulus hears yet another slam from downstairs, but the arguing is too far down the hallway for him to hear. His mother and Sirius have been at it for at least 20 minutes, and he really just wants Sirius to give it a rest. He knows his mother won’t.

Something shatters and the screaming gets louder for a moment. Curiosity getting the best of Regulus he slowly gets up and walks to the door, creaking it open and peeking his head out. He can hear it loud and clear.

“You’re a disgrace to this family,” She seethes, “All you have _ever_ done is a disrespect to the Black family name. You’re lucky I let you live in this house when you bring nothing but shame!”

“Lucky?” Sirius mockingly laughs, “I don’t consider being berated by bigots daily as lucky.”

“Don’t you dare use that language with me!” She screams, “If you continue to speak to me like that this will be the last day you set foot in this house!”

“Sounds tempting if you ask me,” Sirius scoffs, “Getting away from this hellhole? That sounds _wonderful_.” 

“Then get out!” Her voice hits a decibel he didn’t know she could, “Don’t ever show your face here again if that’s what you want!”

“Perfect! Great, fantastic!” He sarcastically cheers, “Kicking out your own son, really classy, mother.”

“You’re _no_ son of mine,” She practically spits, “Either you fall back in line or you will be out of this house tonight.”

“Doubling back now, mother?” He taunts, “You know- Ah!” 

Regulus flinches back at the sound, and he knows she probably just grabbed him by the collar to drag him closer. Regulus can’t hear whatever she’s saying, but he’s sure he can fill in the blanks. 

On instinct, he heads down the hall and about halfway down the stairs before he hears Sirius hit the ground and he stops, realizing what he’s doing. Before he can scramble back upstairs his mother has already rounded the corner, grabbing onto his wrist and pulling him all the way down.

“You brat!” She exclaims, shoving him to stand in front of her, “Coming down here to defend your traitor of a brother? Or were you listening in when you were _explicitly_ told to stay in your room?”

Regulus just stares at her, eyes wide with paralyzing fear. He barely processes what she said, there’s no chance he can answer it.

“Answer me when I speak to you!” She grabs onto his wrist so hard he feels she might break it.

He looks back to Sirius, hoping desperately he can get him out of this situation. His mother is already furious, and watching her get angrier at him is bone-chilling. 

“Stop-”

Sirius only gets out a word before Regulus pays for it, his mother jabbing her wand at him and casting what is undoubtedly a very strong cast of Crucio. 

He isn’t on his feet for more than a couple of seconds, collapsing from the unbearable pain coursing through his body. She only holds it for around 20 seconds, but it’s enough to render him immobile on the floor. He can dully feel that he scratched his face on the table in the hallway when he fell, but it barely compares to everything else he’s feeling.

“Leave him alone!” Sirius argues, “He’s got nothing to do with this!”

“I didn’t ask for you’re assessment!” She yells back, “Your ridiculous ideals have corrupted your brother! And I do _not_ tolerate naughty, disgusting, rebellious traitors in this house!”

Her screaming seems to explode something against his skull, and his ears ring loud enough to block out the screaming match Sirius is still encouraging. 

He surprised when he feels someone pull him back up onto his feet, looking over to see Sirius, still furious, guiding him up the stairs. He stumbles out of Sirius’ grip back to his doorway, where he leans against it in any hope of staying upright. The Cruciatus curse never gets any better.

Sirius yells back at their mother before he slams his door, “You want me out? I got some good news for you!” 

Regulus practically falls over at the sound of the slamming door, panic feeling like it’s choking him on top of everything else. Sirius _can’t_ be leaving, Regulus will be alone. With his parents, more importantly with his mother. Who almost rendered him unconscious not even 5 minutes ago. 

He needs to stop him. But he physically can’t move anywhere, nor can he clear his head enough to.

He waits for another 3 or so minutes, Sirius’ door flinging open as he storms out of his room. He makes it about halfway down the hallway before Regulus can choke something out loud enough to catch his attention.

“Sirius,” Is all he can say.

Sirius spins around, his face shifting from anger to shock when he realizes he _has a brother_. 

He sets the trunk he’s dragging down and runs over, “Shit, Regulus.”

“You’re not leaving,” Regulus weakly protests, trying to convince himself more than Sirius. The sentence gives way to tears, which Regulus has been trying to suppress.

“I don’t have a choice, shit,” He pulls Regulus into a hug, and Regulus practically puts his entire weight on him. Sirius takes it. “I’m so sorry, but she’ll kill me if I stay any longer, you know that.”

Regulus shakes his head, struggling to find the right words. Realistically, there are none. He just weakly grabs onto Sirius in some worthless attempt to keep him from leaving. Regulus can barely stand, and Sirius is going to leave him here

“It’s going to be alright, Reg,” Sirius replies, and Regulus can tell he’s crying too, “I’m sorry, I don’t have a choice.”

“You need to,” He whispers, “I’ll be alone.”

Sirius pauses a moment before stepping back and looking him in the eye, keeping a strong hold on his brother’s shoulders knowing he’ll fall over if he doesn’t, “Come with me.”

Regulus shakes his head in partial shock, “I can’t- No, I can’t.”

“I don’t want to leave you,” Sirius says, “I can’t do that, come with me, Reg.”

Even the sentiment sends Regulus into a deeper panic, and Sirius must’ve noticed. Considering Regulus is now barely breathing, it isn’t that hard. 

“Breathe, Reg,” He instructs, “I’m telling you, you can come with me. We’ll be safe, somewhere else. Please.”

“She’ll-”

“She’ll do nothing,” Sirius stops him, “I’ll make sure of it. You saw what she does to me _and_ to you when you’re here, let me get you out.”

Regulus stammers for an answer, wanting _so badly_ to leave with him.

“Come on, I’ll help,” Sirius offers, guiding Regulus into his room and starting to pack his things up for him. Regulus didn’t stop him, really, he didn’t want to. Sirius knows him well, and everything Regulus would traditionally be bringing to school goes right into his trunk.

Sirius drags his trunk to him, but Regulus just shakes his head, “This isn’t smart.”

“Maybe it’s not,” Sirius reasons, “But it’s safer than anything you’re getting here. Come with me, Reg.”

Regulus contemplates it a moment before he bites the bullet and grabs his trunk from Sirius.

Sirius smiles at him and walks out, Regulus following behind him, although slowly. Sirius storms down the hallway and down the stairs, but Regulus can’t keep up with him and settles for letting him get down there first.

“Hah, you’re leaving?!” She cackles, “Who do _you_ think you’re going?!”

“Away from here,” Sirius replies coldly.

The slow banging of Regulus coming down the stairs stops his mother from answering, and it only takes her a moment to determine what the sound is.

“You brats!” She suddenly explodes, “You are not taking him with you!” 

Regulus reaches the bottom of the stairs, making the grave mistake of looking at his mother. Her face shakes him more than he expected.

“Regulus Arcturus Black,” She hisses out, taking a couple of intimidating steps forward, “You go back upstairs right now.”

Regulus almost flees back upstairs, but Sirius grabs onto him before he can, “I’m taking him with me.”

“No, you are not!” 

“Why would you want sons who don’t bow down to your every rule?!” Sirius yells back, pushing Regulus back towards the door clumsily. Regulus can’t really listen to his brother and his mother at the moment, half because he doesn’t want to know and half because he’s too busy reminding himself to _breathe_.

Sirius opens the door and urges Regulus out onto the muggle street their house is hidden on. There’s a moment, where his mother reaches out to grab onto Regulus to drag him back in, but his father decides he wants to join the party.

“Let them run, Walburga,” He says from off down the hall, “You know they’ll come crawling back.”

His mother steps back and Sirius rushes him out of the house. It would be a lie if Regulus said he even knew what was going on, looking to Sirius for some sort of guidance. His brother’s confidence hasn’t wavered in the slightest.

“Come sit,” Sirius guides him over to a nearby bench, a welcomed rest, “Are you alright?”

Regulus ignores his question, “Where now?”

“I think I have an idea.”

***

By the time they get off the bus and walk down the block, Regulus is surprised he’s still on his feet. He’s absolutely exhausted, and still ridiculously sore from being _literally_ tortured before he left. Not to mention it’s freezing, and although the rain is only enough to dampen his hair, it doesn’t make anything _better_. 

They walk up to the door, Regulus practically cowering behind Sirius as his brother knocks on the door. The voices inside sound for a moment before one of them gets closer, the door opening to reveal James Potter, staring in shock at the both of them. Regulus refuses to hold eye contact.

“Holy- What- I’ll ask later, come in both of you,” He steps back and Sirius steps inside, Regulus rushing to follow him. Never did he think he would be cowering behind his brother in front of anyone _but_ their mother.

“Who is- Oh my goodness! Sirius? What happened?” An older woman, presumably James’ mother asks before shaking her head, “Don’t answer that, I’ll be right back.”

She rushes upstairs and James puts Sirius’ trunk off to the side, going to take Regulus’ but hesitating when he sees he’s leaning on it. “Is it ok if I take this?” He asks, pointing to the trunk. Regulus nods, moving to take his weight off of it. Big mistake, and he grabs onto Sirius’ shoulder instead. 

Mrs. Potter comes back down the stairs with two towels, handing one to Sirius and draping the other over Regulus’ shoulders. Strange, considering she doesn’t even know who he is.

She stares at Regulus a moment, “Are you Sirius’ brother, dear?”

He nods, and Sirius takes up responding for him, “Yeah, this is Regulus.”

“It’s nice to meet you Regulus,” She gives him a concerned look, “You look terribly faint, dear, do you want to come sit?”

He panickedly looks off elsewhere, opening his mouth a couple of times to say something but failing to actually form any words.

“Go sit, Reg,” Sirius looks back at him, “You’re putting about half your weight on me, you need it.”

Regulus flushes with embarrassment, hoping that Sirius wouldn’t mention that. Mrs. Potter doesn’t comment on it, though.

“Just kick your shoes off,” She says, and he manages to listen, although he’s happy Sirius has the strength to support him. Mrs. Potter offers her hand, but he doesn’t take it. She guides him over to their dinner table, having him take a seat in one of the wooden chairs. 

She kneels in front of him and looks at what he guesses is the cut on his face. “That doesn’t look good, I’ll treat it for you later dear,” She stands back up and turns to Sirius and James, who are having what looks like a pretty solemn conversation at the door, “Sirius, James, come sit over here, we’ll talk over tea.”

The two walk over, sitting across from one another on either side of Regulus. Regulus _hates_ this, he’s never been more uncomfortable in his life. It’s actually making him sick, this is _terrifying_. 

Sirius puts a hand on Regulus’ shoulder and he jumps, Sirius quickly taking his hand away, “Sorry.”

Regulus looks off toward the table, defensively folding his arms around his stomach. 

A couple of minutes later Mrs. Potter sets 4 cups of tea on the table, taking a seat across from Regulus. She directs her question to Sirius, thankfully reading the room, “Tell me what happened, dear.”

“Uh, well- I got us kicked out,” Sirius stammers, “No, actually I got kicked out. My mother is- you know, insane, and I couldn’t leave Regulus with her. I didn’t know where else to go but here.”

“I’m glad you came here,” She assures him, “I just cannot believe she would do that, to disown her own son? And allow them both to leave? Sickening.”

“I’m sorry for just showing up unannounced,” Sirius apologizes, “With my brother no less.” 

Of course Regulus is making it worse.

“Don’t apologize, especially not for your brother,” She softly scolds him, “Do you have anywhere else to go? Family or anything?”

Regulus’ heart hits his feet. As much as he hates it here, he’d rather not be moved around again tonight.

“No,” He shakes his head.

“Mum,” James starts, but Mrs. Potter doesn’t let him say anything else.

“Hush James, I know what you’re going to say,” She says, “Neither Sirius nor his brother are going anywhere. As I’ve told you, Sirius, our door is always open.”

Regulus sees Sirius smile, “Thank you so much.”

“Now drink, we’ll talk specifics later,” She urges, although Regulus merely looks at the cup. He has _no_ desire to drink anything. 

“Reg,” Sirius calls his attention up, “Drink something.”

Regulus just stares at him. He doesn’t need to be babied. 

“Don’t just stare at me,” Sirius replies, “Don’t be rude-”

“Nonsense, Sirius,” Mrs. Potter calmly stops him, “He doesn’t have to have any if he doesn’t want to.”

Sirius backs off and looks over to James, who decides it’s time for a subject change, “Do you want to hear about the letter Moony sent me the other day?”

“Sure,” Sirius shrugs, and it sends James off on his tangent. 

Regulus doesn’t say anything, but he feels _horrible_. Not only does he feel bad about taking hospitality at who, to him, is a stranger’s house, but he physically feels like he’s either going to collapse or vomit from nerves.

He’s never been as confident as Sirius. He would have _never_ done this alone. 

But even still, he’s not sure he regrets it.


	2. I'll Be Watching

Mrs. Potter comes back down the stairs with what looks like a first aid box, smiling at Regulus. She excused Sirius and James back up to James’ room, leaving just him alone downstairs. He knows it’s the polite thing to do, as she’s literally  _ housing _ him, but he really doesn’t want to talk to her. Nothing against her, she seems insanely sweet, but Regulus doesn’t really like  _ talking _ to people.

She pulls up a chair to sit in front of him, setting the box on the table and grabbing a bottle out of it. “I was a healer, back when I worked,” She tells him, “This serum should help close up this cut nice and quick, ok? It shouldn’t hurt.”

Regulus just nods, although he still flinches back when she puts her hand up to his face.

“I’m sorry,” She sits back, “This shouldn’t take more than a moment, alright?”

He quickly nods again, and she uses the dropper and puts it over the cut. She was right, he barely feels it, and it barely takes a few seconds.

“How old are you, dear?” She calmly asks, moving to dab something else on his face.

“14,” He answers quietly, and he’s pretty sure that’s the first time she’s heard him speak.

“So you and Sirius are a year apart?”

“2,” Regulus corrects her, and she nods in realization.

“Ah, yes yes, Sirius is a year older than James is,” She lets out a small laugh, “I forget that far too often.”

Regulus awkwardly looks down to his lap, not really knowing what to say to that. Or if he should say anything.

Mrs. Potter sits back and smiles, “That looks much better now. Does it feel better?”

Regulus nods, which isn’t a lie.

“Good, that’s the goal,” She pauses, “We have a guest room with a bed you’re welcome to stay in, as Sirius will likely stay in the second bed in James’ room like he normally does. They’re right next door to one another, come, I’ll show you.”

She gets up and offers him a hand as she did before, but he once again doesn’t take it. He follows her slowly up the stairs and over to the guest room door. He can hear talking in James and Sirius’ room, although it’s mostly James. 

She opens the door to reveal a small but nice bedroom, with one bed just as she said. She gestures over and he takes a seat on it, surprised when she sits across from him.

“I know you likely don’t want to talk right now, so I’ll leave you alone in a moment,” She calmly says, “But did something happen before you came? You just look really faint, dear, and I don’t want anything happening to you.”

Regulus only contemplates it for a moment, knowing he’s not supposed to talk about what his mother does. He just shakes his head, although he can tell she doesn’t believe him.

“I’ll leave it for now,” She concedes, “Are you hungry? Would you like something to eat before dinner?”

Regulus shakes his head again. He just wants to be in here alone.

“Alright, come downstairs if you need absolutely anything,” She smiles at him and gets up, “Don’t hesitate to ask.”

He nods and she  _ finally  _ walks out of the room, leaving him alone. He pulls himself up further on the bed, trying desperately to sort through what one Earth he just went through. It’s too much, it feels like too much. Suddenly he’s somewhere new, with  _ no _ idea what comes next. Regulus hates not knowing.

The door opens and Sirius walks in, smiling at Regulus. “That cut looks better,” He comments as he walks over to sit in front of him, “How’re you doing, Reg?”

Regulus shrugs, shaking his head. 

“That’s not an answer,” Sirius sighs, “I just want to know if you’re alright. I- I moved us around a lot, I feel like I should be asking that.”

Regulus pauses before giving him an answer, “Sick.”

Sirius gives him a saddened look, “Goddammit, I’m sorry. I feel horrible about getting you hit with that curse, you shouldn’t have been trekking around after that. Damnit, I’m sorry Reg.”

Regulus doesn’t say anything, appreciating the apology although it wasn’t really Sirius’ fault.  _ He _ ran loudly down the stairs. 

“I know you don’t know the Potters yet but,” Sirius says, “They’re the nicest people I’ve ever met, and I’m sure Mr. and Mrs. Potter are going to love you. Although, I know you hate change.”

“Shut up,” Regulus cuts him off, partially rolling his eyes. Sirius knows him better and takes it as a joke as he intended it.

“It’s true,” Sirius smiles, “You can’t deny it, can you?”

Regulus just rolls his eyes again.

“Exactly,” Sirius ruffles Regulus’ hair, “Take a nap before dinner, maybe you’ll feel better.”

Regulus looks at him skeptically, not quite understanding how he wouldn’t miss dinner if he slept.

“Not every house runs like our mother’s does,” Sirius reads his mind, “Someone will come wake you up, don’t worry.”

He nods, and Sirius gets up and goes to walk back out.

“I’m right next door, just knock, it’ll shut James up,” Sirius smiles at him, “Love you, Reg.”

Sirius doesn’t wait for an answer, knowing he won’t say it back, walking out and shutting the door behind him. 

Regulus doesn’t want to fall asleep, as tired as he is his nerves won’t allow that. He’s somewhere he doesn’t know, with people he doesn’t know, staying in a bed that isn’t his. He wouldn’t sleep under  _ one _ of those conditions, let alone all three. 

He opts for going into his trunk, trying to be quiet as possible, grabbing out the only piano book stashed in there. He sets it on the bed in front of him and begins to work through them, playing some type of air piano. It’s not as good as actually playing it, but it’s giving him some sense of normalcy. 

It’s as good as it’s going to get. 

***

“Cissa, this letter is for you,” Lucius walks in from the next room, holding out a letter. 

Narcissa looks at it skeptically, getting up and taking it from him, “I wasn’t expecting any letters. Who brought it?”

“Geyser, your aunt’s bird,” Lucius takes a seat on the couch, Narcissa following.

Narcissa opens it slowly, noting her aunt’s scratchy handwriting. The note is abnormally short.

_ Narcissa Black, _

_ Do not, under any circumstances, attempt further contact with your traitorous cousins until they are back under my roof. They’ve proved just as sickening as your sister. _

_ I’ll be watching. _

Narcissa just stares at it a moment, desperately trying to put the pieces together. Sirius  _ and _ Regulus? Traitors? And  _ not  _ living with her aunt? 

“This makes no sense,” She mindlessly slurs, reading it over, “No no, that doesn’t make sense.”

Lucius wraps an arm around her shoulder, and she looks over, teary-eyed. She’s not sure why, she doesn’t  _ feel _ upset. It’s almost out of shock, she can’t believe something like that could be  _ true _ . Sirius, that makes total sense, but Regulus? He would never do that.

“Are you alright, sweetheart?” He gives her a concerned look, taking his other hand and cupping the side of her face. She savors the touch, as it’s something Lucius isn’t the best at. 

“Yeah, I just,” She hesitates, looking back to the note, “It’s just a shock.”

He nods, staring at her a moment, “Are you going to try and write them?”

“I don’t know where they  _ are _ , Lucius,” She takes a calming deep breath, “Sending owls in random directions isn’t a smart idea, you know that.”

“I was more asking if you were going to listen to your aunt,” He corrects her.

“Absolutely not,” She adamantly shakes her head, Lucius dropping his hand down.

“Is that a good idea-”

“Lucius, do you have any idea the things my aunt can do?” Narcissa cuts him off, Lucius moving to put some distance between them, “She is dangerous  _ not _ furious, I don’t even want to imagine what she did to them that pushed them to  _ both  _ leave.”

Lucius stares at her a moment, clearly not understanding, “Cissa, I’m sure they’re safe and alright, doesn’t Sirius have that friend he sneaks to during summers?”

“The Potters, yes,” She nods, “But what about Regulus? He doesn’t know them, he’s probably beyond uncomfortable. He doesn’t do well around our family, there’s no way he’ll like a new one.”

“He’ll be alright-”

“You aren’t listening to me, Lucius!” Narcissa frustratedly yells back at him.

He looks at her with a guilt laced expression, “I’m sorry, I- don’t know how else to help, sweetheart.”

Her frustration shifts to tears, not of any will of her own, and Lucius pulls her into a hug. She buries her head in his shoulder as he soothingly rubs her back, whispering, “It’ll be alright, sweetheart, it’s alright.”

She doesn’t even really know  _ why  _ she’s upset, but she just lets herself revel in the feeling for the moment. It’s not light news, that her only two cousins were probably just disowned, God knows where, likely staying with people she doesn’t know. 

It’s not Sirius that concerns her, it’s Regulus, who something horrible must have happened to for him to  _ run away _ . The quietest kid she’s ever met now in some stranger’s house? That’s a recipe for disaster, and she knows Sirius is too self-concerned to realize if his brother is struggling. That was somehow always her job. 

She doesn’t care about her aunt, she’s sending something. 

***

James runs a calm hand through Sirius’ hair, a much-appreciated gesture. He forcibly placed himself on top of James, who really doesn’t care. He just needs a good reminder that he still has James, if nothing else. 

“Your hair is very soft,” James comments and Sirius smiles.

“Good, it better be,” Sirius says, “I would be upset if you didn’t say that.”

James laughs, “Well good thing it is.”

Sirius lets the silence sit for a moment before he whispers, “Not to get deep, but I’m worried for Regulus.”

“Why?”

“He’s just- He was really off at dinner, and he won’t talk to me,” Sirius explains.

“I mean, it’s a really big transition, Pads,” James justifies, “I would be concerned if he suddenly was alright right after showing up. Especially him, he’s reserved as it is.”

“I know, but I’m still worried,” Sirius maintains, “Have I ever told you what family functions look like?”

“Other than the fact that they’re a lot of people saying fucked up things, no not really,” James replies.

“Well, that’s most of it, but if you ask any of my cousins they’ll tell you that if you want to talk to Reg you go through me,” Sirius explains, “He’s always glued right behind me. One of the only times I wasn’t there because I got myself locked in my room, Andromeda came upstairs with a teary-eyed Regulus who refused to eat anything at dinner because I wasn’t there and got yelled at. He had  _ all 3 _ of our cousins there.”

“I mean, like I said, he’s super shy,” James agrees, “But you’re here? So shouldn’t he be alright?”

“But he doesn’t know your parents, and he barely knows you,” Sirius points out, “Not to mention he hasn’t  _ met _ your dad yet. I don’t know, maybe it’s just me freaking out over nothing.”

“You have like, a right to be worried. But I still think he’ll be alright, especially if mum has anything to do with it.”

Sirius laughs, “Your mother is the nicest person on this planet.”

“Only to other people,” James argues, “She’s mean to me.”

“She is  _ not _ mean to you, idiot, she told you to wash the dishes.”

“That’s mean!” James laughs, “My best friend and his brother just showed up after being kicked out and I need to do dishes?! Mean.”

Sirius jokingly rolls his eyes, “You’re such a baby.”

Another moment of silence before James breaks it with another question, “What about you, Pads, how are you doing?”

“Hm?” He cocks his head at him.

“Like, you act like you also weren’t rehomed a few hours ago,” James explains, “How are you feeling about it?”

“Honestly? Not bad at all,” He partially shrugs, “I think I would’ve felt worse if I left Reg, but I couldn’t give a shit about my parents. I’m happy I don’t have to live with them.”

“There’s no way you’re just alright after whatever traumatic experience got you kicked out.”

Sirius shrugs again, thinking on it a moment, “I don’t know, I haven’t really thought about how I’m feeling with it, I’d rather spend my focus on Reg, making sure he’s alright or whatever. Does that make any sense?”

James nods, “Yeah, I think it kind of does.”

There’s a knock on the door and James goes to call something, but Sirius gets up before he can. He doesn’t want to just yell if it’s Regulus, so he’ll opt for getting up.

He opens the door and there’s Regulus, standing timidly on the other side with a book in hand. He glances back to James before looking at Sirius, “Sorry.”

“Don’t apologize, you’re alright,” Sirius assures him, “What’s up?”

“Can I, uh, just come sit in here?” He asks, “I’ll be quiet, I just- Don’t want to sit alone, I guess.”

“Yeah sure, you’re totally welcome in here,” Sirius steps back to let him in, “You can sit on my bed if you want.”

Regulus nods and walks over, taking a seat on Sirius’ bed. Sirius smiles at him and goes back over to James, flopping on top of him.

“Ow,” James jokingly deadpans, “Thanks for that.”

“I’m not  _ that _ heavy,” Sirius argues, “You’re just weak.”

“I am the opposite of weak,” James counters, “I’m big and strong.”

“Yeah, ok,” Sirius sarcastically replies, pausing for a moment, “You have to have more stories, talk about something.”

“Don’t have to ask me twice,” James laughs, “I saw Wormtail at the beginning of the summer, right?”


	3. 3 Words

“Sirius, James, come down for breakfast,” Mrs. Potter calls through the door.

James groans, “Five more minutes!” 

“Come on, James, don’t hold everyone else up,” His mother softly scolds, to which he just holds tighter onto Sirius on top of him. 

“Let me up,” Sirius squirms out of his arms, “I’m going to say good morning to Reg, hopefully, you’ll be up by then.”

“No promises,” James pulls the covers up tighter.

Sirius stifles a laugh and walks out of the room, James laying in his now disrupted half-asleep state for a moment before begrudgingly getting up. He practically stumbles down the stairs, noting the strange orientation of the chairs at their relatively small 4 sided square table. It really doesn’t fit 5 people. 

“Hey Mum,” He greets, “How’re we going to fit at this table?”

“It’ll be tight but we’ll fit,” His mother replies, setting plates on the table, “Come help me set the table.”

“But why can’t dad help?” He points to his dad, who is sitting at the table reading, sipping on coffee.

“I’m not here,” His father answers, not looking away from the newspaper in front of him. 

“What- You’re-”

“Help now, James,” His mother cuts him off, and he rolls his eyes but listens. He puts two plates of food in the center of the table, his mother diving up silverware between them. There’s a chair between where James normally sits and where they normally put Sirius, although it’s really on the corner. Whoever sits there is going to struggle.

James takes his seat next to his mother, but she urges him up, “Sit next to your father today.”

He just listens, knowing it’s not really worth the argument. He slides into the seat next to his dad and smiles, “Hi!”

“Good morning James,” He smiles back, “From what I’ve taken I have two additional sons now?”

James laughs, “I mean, I guess you can take it like that.”

Footsteps grow louder coming down the stairs, and James turns around to see Sirius come down first. Behind him is a tired, rather messy looking Regulus. James almost immediately looks off towards his empty plate, that  _ stupid _ fucking boy crush from 3rd year crashing back. It’s Sirius’  _ little brother _ , Sirius’  _ little brother _ is not  _ attractive _ .

And now he’s blushing. 

“I’ll be right back,” He says, rushing himself off into the bathroom. He just stares into the mirror for a moment, sorting through the small crisis he just had. He might be  _ very  _ in love with Lily, but that doesn’t mean Regulus Black isn’t kind of hot. Maybe a little. 

He shakes it off, walking back out to the table. Sirius is sitting at the strange corner seat, Regulus between him and James’ mother. James takes his seat and starts filling his plate as if he’d been doing it every day of his life. Mostly because he had, but that’s beside the point. 

“Fleamont, put the paper down while we’re eating,” His mother scolds, “We barely have the room for us, your newspaper does not make the cut.”

“Just have James eat on the floor,” He jokes as he sets the paper down on the floor next to him, “It’s where his food all ends up anyway.”

“Hey!” James laughs, “No need!” 

“Your father is absolutely right,” His mother agrees, much to his dismay, “Although you are not eating on the floor.”

“Anyway,” His father moves right on, looking at Sirius, “Sirius, not the best circumstances but it’s great to see you again. I can’t believe the one night I’m not home this all happens, just my luck.”

Sirius smiles at him, glancing over to Regulus, whose eyes are glued down. 

“Mind introducing me to your brother?” He asks, “I’ve only ever heard the sporadic stories.”

“Stories, huh?” Sirius looks over to James, who pretends not to notice, “Well, this is Regulus, he’s my mildly annoying little brother.”

Regulus shoots him an annoyed look but doesn’t say anything. James’ father smiles at him.

“It’s nice to meet you, Regulus,” He looks between the two brothers, “Wow, you two look an awful lot alike.”

Sirius leans over to James, “I can tell you why that is.”

James laughs, stopping when his mother shoots both of them a look. They smile but go back to their breakfast, glancing at one another like some sort of mischievous unspoken communication. 

“Regulus dear, you haven’t eaten anything,” His mother comments, “Are you not hungry?”

“Sorry,” He mutters, picking up his fork and taking a small bite. He visibly struggles to swallow it.

“No need to apologize,” His mother consoles, “You don’t have to eat anything if you don’t want to right now.”

He nods but takes another bite anyway, visibly  _ really _ uncomfortable. Sirius leans over again, whispering to James, “I told you.”

James wants to say something back, but he knows he’ll get in trouble. They’ll talk about it later. 

His mother looks sympathetically at Regulus but doesn’t push the issue any further. If he knows his mother, she is going to be on top of him making sure he’s alright. It doesn’t  _ matter _ that she doesn’t know him. 

James holds a couple of sporadic conversations with his father and occasionally Sirius, over the next 20 minutes or so. His mother barely chimes in, throwing concerned glances in Regulus’ direction, who manages to force down half of the small portion of eggs on his plate. 

His father stands up and points to James’ empty plate, “Are you done?”

James nods and he takes it, pointing then at Sirius’ plate, “Are  _ you _ done?”

Sirius also nods and he takes the plate, walking off and putting them in the sink without even asking his mother and Regulus. 

James looks to his mother, “Are we ok to go?”

His mother sighs but nods, “Yes, you may. Regulus, you’re excused too, if you aren’t hungry.”

Sirius doesn’t get up, waiting for Regulus’ answer.

“Thank you,” He says to her before looking over to Sirius. 

Sirius then stands up, James and Regulus following him like some kind of leader. James isn’t really  _ following _ him, moreso taking it at his pace. He can tell Sirius is trying not to leave Regulus behind, and he doesn’t want to either. 

They head back up the stairs, Regulus breaking off to hide in his room. Sirius flops back on his bed, and James grabs a seat next to him.

“You’re a lot less upbeat than last night,” James comments. 

“You think?” Sirius dryly laughs, “Regulus said 3 words and had maybe 4 bites. And  _ neither  _ of us got lunch yesterday.”

“You didn’t _get_ _lunch_?” James looks at him in confusion, “What do you mean you didn’t get lunch? How the fuck did that happen?”

“My mother was mad, duh,” Sirius says as if this were common knowledge, staring at the ceiling.

“Yeah, duh, ok Sirius,” James replies sarcastically, “These things don’t  _ happen  _ to normal kids, my mum would flip if she found out your mum didn’t feed you.”

“I’m sure she would,” Sirius agrees.

“Did you see her watching Regulus all breakfast? She was  _ not _ happy he wasn’t eating.”

“I mean, she wasn’t mad,” Sirius looks at him, “She was just concerned.”

“I never said she was mad,” James points out, “She’s gonna be in and out of that room dropping food off until he eats something, though.”

“He won’t eat it,” Sirius shakes his head, “I wish her luck though.”

“You’d be surprised  _ how _ much she cares.”

Sirius looks off elsewhere before getting up and walking over to his trunk, pulling out parchment and a quill, “I’m going to write Remus, maybe fill him in.”

“I’m sure he’ll be happy,” James heads over to his own bed, “I’m going to… do something, not sure what, but definitely something.”

“Good luck with something there, Prongs.” 

James laughs, “Thanks, Pads.”

***

Regulus, for lack of a better term, feels horrible. 

He pretty much just sat still at breakfast, he had maybe the smallest handful of food. He knows Mrs. Potter was looking at him the whole time, and he couldn’t tell if she was mad or just concerned, but it felt like she was mad. 

She called upstairs 10 or so minutes ago to go downstairs if they wanted something for lunch, which he didn’t, obviously. He’d rather stay upstairs in his room, he’s not hungry anyway. James and Sirius went downstairs, he heard it, and he hasn’t heard them come back up. 

He jumps at the sound of someone knocking on the door before hesitantly calling, “Come in.”

In walks Mrs. Potter, giving him a sympathetic smile but stopping a couple of steps into the room, “Are you busy, dear?”

He shakes his head, moving back preemptively in case she wants to take a seat. He guesses it, and she takes a seat on the bed in front of him.

“Are you feeling alright, Regulus?” She asks, catching him admittedly a little off guard.

“Y-Yeah, I’m fine,” He rushes to reply, slipping over his words as he does. His mother would have gotten so mad at him for that. 

“Can you move a little closer? Just for a moment,” She asks. He moves himself a little closer and she puts the back of her hand on his forehead, scaring him for a second. “I’m just trying to see if you have a fever, I’m sorry dear,” She apologizes.

“Sorry,” He mutters. 

“You’re not running hot at all,” She puzzles, “Are you sure you feel fine? You haven’t eaten and you look a little faint.”

“I’m fine,” He tries to assure her, although she isn’t buying it.

She pauses a moment, “I know it’s strange circumstances, but as long as you’re here I want to make sure you’re alright.”

He nods, his attention caught by someone else walking in the room. Of  _ course _ Sirius is here. 

“Hi Mrs. Potter,” He waves, “Hey Reg, are you feeling ok?”

“I’m fine, Sirius,” He annoyedly sighs. He doesn’t need his brother on his case at all, let alone on top of someone else. 

“You’re very clearly not fine,” He leans in the doorway, “Saying you are isn’t helping.”

He rolls his eyes, “I am.”

“People are  _ trying _ to help,” Sirius attempts to sympathize, although he’s not doing very well, “It’s ok to let people help.”

“I don’t need help!” He practically yells back, his voice surprisingly horse, “Stop it, Sirius.”

“Regulus,” Mrs. Potter calmly warns, a tone nothing like he’s used to. She looks over to Sirius, “Sirius, run off with James for a while, and shut the door dear.”

He nods and walks out, shutting the door behind him. 

Regulus takes a breath before looking back at Mrs. Potter, unable to look her in the eye, “Sorry.”

“It’s alright, Regulus,” She sets a hand on his knee, “I know it’s a difficult situation, dear, and although the way Sirius approached it wasn’t the best, he’s right. If there’s something wrong or you’re not feeling alright I want to be here to listen and try and help,” She smiles, “ _ I’m  _ your mother now, I told Sirius this when he came over for the first time and I’m telling you too. If you need anything at  _ all _ , you can always come to me, ok?”

Regulus just stares at her, attempting to process what she just said. Affection is so foreign to him, especially maternal. He’s not even friends with her actual son, and she has no reason to even remotely care about him. Why  _ would _ she?

“Would you like a hug, dear?” She offers, and he tenses. He doesn’t really, he’s not a fan of hugs, but he feels bad saying no. 

“Uh, I- I mean,” He stutters, although somehow she catches on. 

“It’s alright, don’t feel bad for saying no,” She consoles, “Between Sirius and James, lots of hugs fly around in this house, so I promise I don’t mind if you would rather just sit and talk.”

His shoulders sag in slight relief, knowing he won’t have to unwillingly get close to anyone anytime soon. Although, she doesn’t seem to be getting up.

“Now, you have to be hungry, when was the last time you ate something? Lunch yesterday?”

Regulus slowly shakes his head, knowing that’s probably not a good piece of information to be sharing. 

“No?” She questions, “When then, dear?”

“Breakfast yesterday,” He practically whispers, shameful as if  _ he  _ was the one who locked himself in his room.

“My goodness, that’s no good!” She gets up, “Stay here, I’ll bring something up for you to have. Do you want anything specific?”

He shakes his head, “You don’t have to.”

“I’m going to,” She smiles, “Nothing specific?” 

“No thank you,” He replies. 

“I’ll be right back, dear,” She says before slipping out of the room.

He sighs, pulling his knees up to his chest as he realizes what just happened. He doesn’t understand how she was so nice to him, because it makes no sense why she would be. It’s only been a day, but it’s kind of nice having someone other than his brother caring for him. 

She comes back in with a plate of food, sitting where she was before and setting it in front of him, “I don’t quite know what you like, so I brought up a little bit of everything,” She says, “Just snack on it when you’re hungry.”

“In here?” He asks, skeptical of the fact that he’s allowed to eat up here. Eating is for the table, that just makes sense.

She nods, “Unless you want to come downstairs, you’re free to eat up here.”

“Thank you,” He gives her a small smile, to which she smiles even wider back. 

Something catches her eye off where his trunk is, “You play the piano?”

He nods confidently, happy she’s mentioned the  _ one _ interest he takes pride in. 

“I can’t believe you didn’t mention that,” She smiles at him, “We have a piano, I used to play when I was younger. I haven’t touched it since I had James, though, as he had no interest in learning music. I’ll have to uncover it, clean it up a bit for you.”

He beams, “Thank you.” That opens up a whole new world of possibilities, as he’s never played anywhere that’s not his piano at home or one of the school ones. There’s always someone listening at school, and his mother needs no explaining. Here might be nice.

“Of course, dear,” She puts a hand on his knee, “I have some stuff to do around the house, so if you need anything just come find me, ok?”

“Yes,” He agrees, cutting himself short from replying with his mindless ‘Yes, mother’.

“I mean it, Regulus,” She gets up, “And if either of the boys gives you a problem, let me know.”

“I will,” He assures her. She smiles at him before walking out and shutting the door, leaving him feeling oddly ok. Not perfect, but definitely better than before she walked in. 

Maybe he doesn’t hate this arrangement as much as he thought he did.


	4. Nocturne Op.9 No.2.

Another day goes by, that night plagued by slightly less torturous nightmares than the one before. Still restless, but at least Regulus got at least a couple of hours of sleep. He’ll take it. 

He still feels horrible, and Mrs. Potter let him have breakfast up in his room instead, so he ate considerably more. Still not the whole plate, but some of it. 

The door opens and Mrs. Potter pokes her head in, “All done, dear?” 

“Mhm,” He nods, and she walks in and grabs his plate off the bed.

“Come with me, I have something to show you,” She waves for him to follow her. He hesitantly gets up and follows, _hoping_ it’s what he thinks it is but not getting his hopes up.

They go downstairs, Mrs. Potter having him wait as he drops his dish off in the sink before going through the living room and down the hallway. She opens the door and steps out of the way, revealing a decently big room he didn’t even know existed. There are various boxes and bags, covered up or stashed away throughout the room. There’s an easel and a few canvases in the right corner. He catches a glance of what is undoubtedly Sirius’ art, Regulus could recognize that anywhere. 

The far left corner really grabs his eye, though, with a grand piano sitting uncovered. 

“You’re welcome to go play,” She gestures forward, and he walks over to take a seat on the bench. He knows whatever he’s about to play is going to suck, as he’s _not_ warmed up, but he plays the first piece that comes to mind. Chopin, Nocturne op.9 No.2. A personal favorite, he’s had it pretty much memorized since he was 10. 

The keys are definitely stiffer than the piano he has at home, granted this is probably the first time that this has been used in a while. Although nothing compared to the old, _ridiculously_ expensive piano at home, it’s still really nice. 

He ends up playing the whole piece, Mrs. Potter standing in the doorway the whole time. It’s far from perfect, skipping over some notes by accident and rushing a bit, but it doesn’t even cross his mind. He’s just _thrilled_ to be playing, considering he didn’t think they had a piano. 

He places his hands on his knees and is surprised when Mrs. Potter claps, “That was amazing, dear!”

He glances behind him and smiles, “Thank you.”

Footsteps sound down the hallway and Regulus looks back to see James peeking in, “Woah, was that you?”

He raises an eyebrow, “Yes?”

“I didn’t even know that piano worked anymore,” James laughs, “That’s crazy.”

Regulus just shrugs, not really knowing what to say. It’s not really that crazy to him. 

Mrs. Potter points to a bookshelf and a couple of boxes behind him. “There are some pieces in there, you’re welcome to sift through them. All of those are probably older than you are,” She laughs. His eye catches a book he recognizes and gets up and grabs it, smiling as he flips through the familiar pages. 

“I’ll leave you be, come out of you need anything, alright?”

He nods, “Thank you.”

Mrs. Potter urges James out of the way and shuts the door, leaving him excitedly laboring over what he’s going to play first.

 _God,_ he needs this. Music makes everything better.

***

“Regulus! Sirius! Come here, boys!” Mr. Potter calls, “I have letters for you!” 

Regulus gets up from the bench, heading out into the kitchen behind Sirius, who was presumably in a heated game of Wizard’s Chess with James, who is sprawled across the couch.

Mr. Potter looks at both letters before handing Sirius one and Regulus the other, “Two birds showed up at the same time, although they look like they’re from the same person.”

Sirius glances over at the letter in Regulus’ hand, “No, they aren’t.”

Sirius leans against the counter and starts to open the letter in his hand up, and Regulus just watches him. He’s interested to know who sent his letter because it had to have been a family member based on the handwriting.

“Holy- My god,” He smiles, looking up to Regulus and turning the letter around, “It’s Andromeda.”

Regulus walks over to stand next to him, looking over his shoulder. He just scans the letter, as it’s not meant for him, but his name catches his eye. 

“She’s inviting us over?” Regulus asks, looking over to Sirius who is still finishing reading.

“That’s what I’m getting,” Sirius looks over to him, “I say we go, I miss Andy!” 

Regulus shrugs, pretending to act indifferent but also excited about the idea of seeing Andromeda again. 

“I know you’re just pretending you don’t care,” Sirius playfully pushes Regulus’ head, “I’ll go write her back, have fun with your letter.”

Regulus rolls his eyes and Sirius walks off back upstairs, James confusedly looking at Regulus.

“What?” Regulus questions why he’s being stared at.

“Where the hell did he just go?” James gestures in front of him, “We’re in a game! What is he doing?”

“Writing a letter,” Regulus replies.

“I’m gonna kill him! He just left me!” James gets up and runs upstairs, leaving Regulus standing in the kitchen with only Mr. Potter, who is busy with something at the counter.

Regulus retreats back to the piano room, which has been his makeshift safe space since Mrs. Potter showed it to him yesterday. He takes a seat on the piano bench and slowly opens the letter, notably marked with the Black family seal. It’s someone in his family, which can only go two ways: Narcissa or something bad. 

To his relief, he sees her name signed at the bottom and goes back up to read the letter with much less apprehension. 

_Regulus Black,_

_I hope this letter finds you, as I’m unsure of where you ended up. Both Lucius and I suspect Sirius took you to the Potters, but if you aren’t there, I hope wherever you are is safe. As much as I hate to admit it, that household is safe, and I trust you’re alive and fed as long as you’re there._

_On a separate note, I sincerely hope you’re doing alright. I’ve worried nonstop about you since your mother wrote me about it, admittedly concerned for what drove you to leave your mother with Sirius. I do not at all question your choice, I know you’re judgment is much more sound than your brother’s. I just want to make sure she didn’t do anything, as I know your mother can be dangerous._

_Speaking of her, she’s been off the deep end for days. Please, even so far away, be careful. I would love to hear back, but make sure it’s addressed to my flat, in case I’m stuck spending a weekend at Grimmauld. I don’t want to make you worry at all, knowing moving is stressful enough. Although, I think you understand what I mean._

_Hopefully, I’ll get to see you soon, maybe after I get your mother off my back._

_Best wishes,_

_Narcissa Black_

He closes his eyes and sighs, not sure if he’s happy to hear from Narcissa or nervous that his mother is upset. It’s definitely a bittersweet letter, but he’d rather know the truth. That’s why he and Narcissa get along so well. 

He gets up to bring the letter up to his room when he hears Mr. Potter yell something up the stairs, which sounded like “Someone’s here.”

Regulus freezes by the door, waiting to hear if someone else walks in. One of the two of them comes flying down the stairs, and he cracks the door so he can hear whatever is going on better.

“You’re going to be excited!” James yells, and Regulus hears the door creak open. The next voice that speaks he doesn’t recognize, nor can he hear enough to decipher what they said. 

His brother isn’t as quiet, “You were coming and you didn’t tell me?”

Ok, so it’s someone Sirius is excited to see. There are a few people it _could_ be, but he’s pretty sure he knows who it is. He walks out of the room as quietly as he can, walking along the wall until the corner turns to where the three of them are. He takes one hesitant step to look around the corner.

He’s right, it’s Remus, with Sirius wrapped in his arms. He’s looking down, so he doesn’t see Regulus peering around the corner, although James behind them does. 

“Hi, Regulus!” He greets, waving. 

Regulus gives him a small wave, looking over to Remus, who is now looking up at him. 

“Hello Regulus,” Remus gives him a soft smile, “Nice to see you.”

Regulus just nods, really wanting to just go back up to his room and write this response to Narcissa. But they’re right by the staircase, and he doesn’t want to have to slip by. 

“Do you two want to go upstairs?” James asks Remus and Sirius. Remus leans down and whispers something to Sirius, who nods. 

The two go upstairs and James winks at Regulus before disappearing up after them. Oh good, so he knew Regulus was just too much of a baby to say excuse me.

He heads up into his room and takes out parchment and a quill, only getting about two lines into the letter before the door opens.

He looks up to see James, standing in the doorway, smiling like an idiot, “Hi!”

Regulus stares at him a moment, “Hi?”

“Can I come sit?” James asks, pointing to the spot on the bed in front of him.

“Uh,” Regulus hesitates before moving his letter off to the side, “Sure?”

James happily walks over and grabs a seat in front of him, “So how are you doing?” 

Regulus pauses a second, confused as to what he wants being in here. “Good.”

“That’s good,” James looks at the letter from Narcissa sitting in Regulus’ lap, “What’s that?”

“A letter.”

“From who?” James asks. Regulus didn’t know he was playing 20 questions.

“My cousin,” He answers. 

“Which one? Don’t you have three?” James continues to pry, although it doesn’t seem he’s doing it out of anything but strangely excited interest. 

“Narcissa,” He tells him.

“What are you writing her for? What’d she say?”

“Nothing,” Regulus brushes him off, grabbing the parchment to continue writing. James’ company is great, he just doesn’t want the constant questions. 

James doesn’t stop. “That’s a long letter she sent you, what could she have said? It’s been like 2 days.”

“3,” Regulus corrects, not looking up.

“So what’d she say?”

“Just family stuff,” Regulus replies, not really wanting to dive into his unrelenting fear of his mother with James Potter at the moment.

“What family stuff?” He asks, “Like cousin stuff? I have a lot of cousins, so I understand that.”

Regulus shakes his head, looking up at a genuinely intrigued James. He really is that oblivious.

“No,” Regulus answers, “Not like that.” 

James furrows his brow and pauses a moment before asking a different question, “Well, what about your last cousin? She hasn’t written either of you.”

“Bellatrix?” Regulus half scoffs, “No. I hope she doesn’t.”

“You don’t like her?”

Regulus shakes his head, “Never have.”

“Why? What’d she do?” He questions, “I mean, from what I heard she’s a little off the deep end, but I don’t remember Sirius ever telling me anything horrible, I don’t think.”

He just stares at James a moment, contemplating the right answer to that question. “Forget it,” Regulus goes back to writing.

“No, not forget it,” James crosses his arms, although he’s still smiling, “I just want to talk, you know! Like siblings, that’s what siblings do, right?”

“Wouldn’t know,” Regulus deadpans.

“You didn’t like, talk with Sirius?” James raises an eyebrow, “He’s your brother, right?” 

It takes everything not to look James dead in the eye and tell him that would’ve been a little hard when his mother was _trying to kill them_ and that _James_ took that brotherly relationship from him, but he knows that’ll dig them into a hole he doesn’t want to be in.

Regulus settles for dismissing it, “It’s different.”

“Why?”

“Do you _always_ ask so many annoying questions?” Regulus snaps accidentally, looking up to see a very dejected James. Regulus’ face softens, “I’m sorry.”

“No, I’m sorry for prying,” James gives him an empty smile before getting up, “I’ll leave you to write, I’d tell you to make sure it’s legible but your handwriting is amazing.” He points to what Regulus has already written. 

“Thanks,” Regulus whispers, and James waves before he slips out of the room.

Regulus, admittedly, feels bad about getting upset with James. He didn’t mean to, and he knows James was just _trying_ to have a normal conversation with him. But it appears they have two very different ideas of what a normal conversation looks like.

He forces himself to go back to his letter, replacing one personal problem with another seems to work well enough. 

He’s completely caught off guard when his door flies open a couple of minutes later, Sirius standing on the other side. He looks concerningly angry.

“Reg, what did you say to James?” Sirius immediately questions. 

“What- I- I didn’t-” He stammers, totally not ready for that. 

“Sirius!” James yells from what sounds like just down the hallway, “Leave him alone!” 

“I’m asking one thing,” Sirius calls back to him before walking into Regulus’ room, “What did you say?” 

Regulus panics, opening his mouth but unable to find the words to say anything. Why is Sirius so mad at him?

“Sirius!” James appears in the doorway, “Lay off him.” 

Regulus’ eyes bounce back and forth between Sirius and James. He just stares, though, not saying anything. 

“James, let me talk to him-”

“You’re yelling at him, about me, may I remind you,” James cuts him off, “And I say lay off him.”

Sirius just turns back to Regulus, “What did you say?”

Regulus pushes back fear, too preoccupied with keeping his head in _this_ room to sort out a reply to that. It feels like his mother is questioning him.

“Love,” A third voice from the door cautiously calls, and Regulus looks over to Remus standing behind James, “Come back, leave him be.”

Sirius softens for a moment before waving him off, “He’s my brother, let me deal with it.”

“No,” James starts, but Sirius cuts him off. 

“Yes,” He looks to Regulus, “Why did you snap at him?”

“Get out, Sirius,” Regulus warns, replacing the feeling of fear with one of anger, “Stop questioning me.”

“No, I’m your older brother, I’m supposed to-”

“You’re two years older than me,” Regulus rolls his eyes. 

“That doesn’t matter, I’m still supposed to call you out if you’re being a goddamn brat.” 

“Woah woah woah,” James takes a step into the room, putting a hand out onto Sirius’ shoulder. Regulus shoots back before he can continue. 

“What, are you going to turn into our mother?” Regulus yells, a little louder than he meant to, “Crucio me for talking back?”

The whole room stills, Sirius’ expression dropping. Remus and James look at him in shock, and suddenly the anger wears off. _Goddamn brat_ echoes in his head, and he barely processes the footsteps coming up the stairs. 

“What’s going on boys?” Mrs. Potter questions, squeezing her way by Remus into the room, “Why are you all in here? Regulus, what’s wrong?”

“We’re fine. Sorry, Mrs. Potter,” Sirius apologizes, turning around and going to walk out, but she puts a hand on his shoulder to stop him. 

“Are you sure everything is fine? Why is your brother crying?”

Regulus puts a hand on his face, feeling tears he didn’t realize were there. When did he start crying?

Sirius just shakes his head and keeps walking, joining hands with Remus and heading back to the other room. 

“James,” His mother looks at him, “Go with Sirius and Remus, shut the door on your way out.”

James just listens, shutting the door delicately behind him. 

Mrs. Potter takes a seat on the bed in front of Regulus, “What’s going on, dear? Did they do something?”

He shakes his head, pressing his tongue to the top of his mouth in some hopeless attempt to stop crying. It’s not working.

“They did, or you wouldn’t be crying,” She softly corrects him, putting a hand on his knee, “It’s ok, sweetheart. Here, let me move this.” She moves his letter and quill out from in front of him so she can sit closer. 

“Sorry,” He says absentmindedly, looking down away from her.

“No, you don’t need to apologize,” She consoles, “Are you alright? I should’ve asked that first, are _you_ alright?” 

He nods his head, although that’s not right. And he’s pretty sure she knows that.

“We’ll talk about it later,” She decides, “You don’t have to say yes, but would you like a hug?”

He wants the comfort right now, so he nods. She wraps her arms around him, carefully but lovingly drawing him closer. It’s loving. Strangely, he doesn’t hate it. Maybe her hugs can be an exception to his strict ‘don’t touch me’ rule. 

Or maybe he just needs the reminder that he’s not stuck, locked in his room at Grimmauld Place. 


	5. Triple Forte

Whoops. 

James didn’t  _ mean _ to be the cause of the arising of an argument between Sirius and Regulus. He had just come into the room mentioning that Regulus got fed up with him and all of a sudden Sirius was yelling at him. Sirius called him a brat, Regulus called him their mother, and all of a sudden Regulus was crying and Sirius wouldn’t talk. James didn’t want  _ this _ part of having siblings. 

James just stares at Remus, who has Sirius laying quietly on top of him. Remus whispers something to Sirius, who holds on tighter. Remus looks over to James, them both sharing a look of mutual concern. Neither of them are really qualified for this, they’re both only-children.

The door opens and James looks up to see his father standing in the doorway, “Wh- Oh, hi Remus.”

“Hi, Mr. Potter,” Remus politely smiles. 

His father looks back to James, “Where is your mother? She’s supposed to help me.”

“In Reg’s room, but maybe wait until she comes back out,” James suggests, to which his father looks at him confused. 

“I think I’m being left out of something,” He hesitates, “I’ll come back later.”

“Bye, dad!” James calls and his dad shuts the door. 

Remus looks down at Sirius, “Are you alright, sweetheart?”

Sirius nods, moving so his head is laying facing James. 

“Can I ask you a definitely inappropriate question for right now, Sirius?”

Remus goes to argue for him, “James-”

“No no, it’s fine, go for it,” Sirius says. 

“Crucio? Did I hear him right?”

Sirius sighs and nods, “Yeah, you did.”

“Is that like- a frequent thing?” James hesitantly asks, “It slipped off his tongue a little too easy.”

“Only when she’s mad,” Sirius replies, “Although she did it a lot this summer. Cast it on Reg the night we left, I think that’s why he said it.”

“Was that why he looked horrible when you guys showed up?” James looks to Remus, “For context, when Sirius and Reg showed up on Wednesday, Reg looked like he was going to drop dead.”

“I was worried getting here,” Sirius adds, “I essentially pulled him up the stairs and literally packed his trunk for him. Never get hit with that curse, it’s horrible.”

“I’ll keep a note,” James nervously laughs, “That’s absolutely disgusting, though, my God.”

“It is what it is,” Sirius looks up to Remus, “You’re holding on awfully tight, I’m not going anywhere.”

“Sometimes you tell stories and I wonder how you’ve never mentioned them,” Remus shakes his head, pressing a kiss to Sirius’ forehead. 

“The element of surprise,” Sirius replies.

Remus rolls his eyes, “Whatever you say, love.”

The door opens and James’ mom pokes her head in, “Remus dear, are you staying for dinner? We would love to have you.”

“I would love to stay if it’s no problem,” He replies.

“Perfect, I’ll make a plate for you as well,” She smiles, looking between the three of them, “I’ll call you down when dinner is ready, don’t do anything stupid.”

“We won’t” James answers for them.

“You better not,” She jokingly shoots back at him, “I’ll be downstairs if you need anything.”

She shuts the door and silence falls between the three of them. Sirius whispers something to Remus, to which he leans down and gives him a kiss that lingers a moment too long. James decides maybe he should let them have their moment  _ alone. _

James grabs one of the books off of his nightstand and walks out of the room without saying anything, although neither of them notices. He eyes Regulus’ door for a moment, trying to convince himself that it’s not a good idea to go back and chat with him instead. 

He fails, and he walks into Regulus’s room to find him resting his arms on top of his knees, which are pulled to his chest as he stares at the parchment pieces he has set out on the bed. His head shoots over when James walks into the room, his eyes red-rimmed and bloodshot. Other than that, though, he looks decently alright.

“Hi again,” James smiles, “I got unspokenly sexiled, can I hang out in here? I’ll be less talkative this time, promise.”

Regulus looks at what has laid out before moving it out of the way, James taking it as his cue to walk over and sit. 

“You’re the best,” James smiles at him, 

Regulus moves to sit with his legs crisscrossed instead, going into a drawer and pulling out what looks like a book of sheet music. He puts it in his lap, opening it to a page that’s marked up pretty well.

“What’s that?” James asks, leaning forward.

“Music,” Regulus answers, an odd hint of enthusiasm in his voice.

“It’s got a lot of writing on it,” James comments, “What does it mean?”

“Well, I’ve just circled the tempo or dynamic changes, anything like that,” Regulus points to a couple of the circles he’s talking about, “The sections marked with lines I need to work on, and some of these are just notes.”

James smiles as he listens, he’s found what Regulus will talk to him about. “Back up, what do the circles mark? What were those words?”

“Tempo is like, speed almost, and dynamics are how loud or soft things are played,” Regulus points to an ‘ _ fff’ _ on the page, “That’s a triple forte, so that’s really loud,” He points to a ‘ _ pp’ _ , “And that’s a pianissimo, so that’s very quiet.”

James points to something that says  _ fp _ , “So why are those together?”

“Play it loud first, then immediately quiet,” Regulus explains, taking one hand and moving his fingers as if he were playing it, “That part is weird.”

“What’s weird about it?”

“It’s- Hard to explain,” Regulus shakes his head, “You’d have to hear it.”

“Can I listen to it?” James asks excitedly, seemingly catching Regulus a little off guard.

“Uh, ok,” He nods, grabbing the book off the bed. James jumps up and gestures for Regulus to follow him as if he doesn’t know where he’s going. 

They head down the stairs, catching the attention of his mother cooking, “Hello boys. Regulus, is James keeping you hostage?”

Regulus shakes his head.

“Alright, he better not be,” She smiles before turning back to what she was doing, “Have fun.” 

They head into the piano room, Regulus walking over and taking a seat on the bench. He plays what sounds like some sort of warm-up, and James walks over to stand behind him. 

Regulus doesn’t look back, just patting the space beside him. James grabs a seat, watching as his finger flick across the keys. It’s the same level of mesmerizing that watching Sirius paint is. 

He finishes what he’s playing before opening the book sitting on the piano to the page they were looking at before, “This is what that sounds like.”

Regulus plays the section they were talking about, and to James, it just sounds amazing.

“That just sounds really nice to me,” James comments before excitedly asking, “Can you play the whole thing?”

Regulus gives him a small smile before starting from the beginning, James happily listening along. He’s just excited he got Regulus to share something he’s interested in with him.

It just makes James excited to finally have pseudo siblings.

***

“Come eat boys!” Mrs. Potter yells, pulling Regulus out of his deep explanation to James about what he’s playing. 

James gets up and heads out to the kitchen, Regulus following after him. His decent distance from James is closed by Sirius walking towards him, moving to walk beside him. 

He hesitates a moment before looking over, “You know I would never do what mum did, right?”

“Yeah,” Regulus whispers in response, “I know.”

“Good,” Sirius smiles, ruffling Regulus’ hair, “Just making sure.”

“Hey!” Regulus jokingly swats him off, “Why do you always do that?”

“Because it’s funny,” He laughs, “And you hate it.”

Regulus reaches over and does the same to Sirius, which apparently deeply offends him.

“Woah, that’s where the line is,” Sirius says through laughter, “No touching my hair.”

“Just did,” He slyly smiles, then looking up to Mrs. Potter, who has added another table to fit the now 6 of them, although there are more than 6 chairs. 

She gestures to the table, “You’re all welcome to sit where you’d like, we’ll sit around you.”

Regulus waits for the other three to sit, knowing he’s a little out of place among the three friends. Although, he’s surprised when James takes a seat next to Sirius and pats the chair on the other side of him, “Come sit here Regulus.”

Regulus walks over and sits where James told him to, which is oddly at the head of the table. Remus is the farthest from him, sitting at the other side of Sirius. Mrs. Potter sets down their plates, putting what looks like hers next to Regulus.

Regulus lays eyes on a couple of deep purple marks on the base of Sirius’ neck. So  _ that’s _ why James left them alone.

“Really, Sirius?” He deadpans, Sirius looking at him skeptically before realizing where Regulus is looking between.

“Shit,” He whispers, putting a hand on his neck. 

“Watch your language, Sirius,” Mrs. Potter scolds from the kitchen.

“Sorry! I’ll be right back,” He says, getting up and heading back upstairs.

James looks to Regulus, “See why I came and sought refuge with you?” 

Regulus gives him a small laugh, looking to Remus, who is bright red and looking down at the table.

James turns to him and leans over, “Didn’t think about that did you?”

“Shut up, James,” Remus laughs, pushing him away.

Mr. Potter comes out from downstairs and all three of them look over. 

“Where is Sirius?” He asks, pointing at the empty chair.

“He said he’ll be right back,” Remus replies before James can say something. They exchange heated looks before James starts laughing and breaks the fake tension. 

Sirius comes back down the stairs, this time in a Gryffindor turtleneck sweater, definitely not his because it’s a Quidditch one. 

“Hey, is that mine?” James asks as Sirius takes a seat.

“No proof,” Sirius crosses his arms. 

James leans back, “It literally says my name on it, and my number,  _ and _ my position.”

Sirius laughs, “Ok, you have a point. What are you going to do about it?”

“Do not say what you’re thinking, James,” Remus cuts him off.

“Damnit,” James quietly curses. His parents take their seats at the table and the conversation quiets. 

They all start eating, silence falling over the table for a minute before Sirius speaks. 

“Oh, Mrs. Potter,” He looks over at her, “Is there any problem if Reg and I go to visit one of our cousins at some point this week?”

“It’s no problem with me,” She replies, “Any day in particular?”

“Not yet, I have to write her back and ask,” He looks over to Regulus, “Is that good with you?”

Regulus just shrugs.

“I’ll write her tonight then,” He nods, “Who sent yours?” 

“Narcissa,” Regulus answers.

“I figured,” He says, “Rebellious, did she say anything important?”

Regulus shakes his head, “Nothing you need to know right now.”

“Denied,” James chuckles, bumping Sirius with his elbow. 

“That just means I’ll ask later,” Sirius bumps James back, “And keep asking until I find out.”

James looks at Regulus, “And you’re going to let that happen?”

Regulus shrugs, eying Sirius, “Don’t think have a choice.”

Sirius shakes his head, smiling, “You don’t.”

James’ head bounces back and forth between the two of them, who are staring at one another, “Is this what siblings are like?”

“Yes,” Sirius and Regulus say in tandem. 

James looks over to Remus, who has just been quietly eating, “Do you know what’s happening?”

Remus shakes his head, “James, why would I know what’s happening?”

“I don’t know, I’m just talking,” James laughs, “Just pushing the conversation.”

Mrs. Potter leans over and whispers something to her husband, who laughs and nods. 

“Guys, we’re getting talked about,” James looks between Remus and Sirius on one side and Regulus on the other. 

“Ok, and?” Sirius raises an eyebrow, “Is there a problem?”

“Sirius understands,” Mr. Potter smiles, “Just don’t ask questions.”

“Fleamont, you act like we were gossiping,” Mrs. Potter says to him, “I said one thing.”

“Well it’s no fun that way,” He comments, “It is much more fun when you pretend it is.”

“I’m surrounded by men in this house,” She jokingly rolls her eyes, “I couldn’t have gotten a daughter?”

Mr. Potter laughs, “You have James.”

“Hey!” James exclaims, “That was mean!”

Regulus looks to Sirius, who is staring at him quite fondly. 

“You’re, like, beaming, Reg,” Sirius points out, “I think we won.”

Regulus throws on a straight face and just stares at him, with that dead, Black family look. Sirius just laughs, and Regulus only holds the face for a couple of seconds before he looks off and starts laughing too.

He’s decided, he doesn’t regret leaving at all. 


	6. When The Hell Did You Get So Big?

Sirius walks up to the door of Andromeda’s house, Regulus following timidly behind him. He’s excited, yes, but it’s still a little awkward. Of course it’s going to be, that just makes sense. It’s been 5 years, and he’s a lot different than he was when he was 9.

Sirius knocks, and the door opens not even a minute later.

“Oh my God! Hello!” Andromeda excitedly greets, giving Sirius a huge hug.

“Goddamn,” Sirius steps back, “It’s been a while!”

“You’re telling me,” She laughs looking back to Regulus, “When the hell did you get so big?! Come here, Regulus.”

Regulus walks up and gives her a hug, both shorter and less violent than the one she gave to Sirius. Good to know she still knows him well. 

“Here, come in come in,” She ushes them inside, “Take your shoes off too, don’t track dirt in my house, it doesn’t need to be any dirtier than it is.”

They listen, and Andromeda leads them up the stairs and gestures into the living room, “You’re both welcome to go and sit.”

Regulus follows Sirius as he walks in, noting the  _ abundance  _ of kid’s toys in the room. Sirius leans over, “Does Andy have a kid?”

They get their answer when Andromeda yells down the hall, “Dora! Come out and say hello!”

They both turn around to see a little girl come out of a room down the hallway, rushing down the hallway to stand next to her mother and hold her arms up. 

Andromeda picks her up and looks to Sirius and Regulus, “This is my daughter, Nymphadora.”

“Hi!” The girl waves and smiles, “Who’re you?”

Andromeda points to Sirius, “That’s Sirius.”

“Sirius,” Nymphadora repeats. 

Andromeda points to Regulus, “And that’s Regulus.”

“Regus,” Nymphadora butchers his name.

“No no,” Andromeda lets out a small laugh, “Reg-u- _ lus _ .”

“Reg-lus,” She tries again.

“Just call him Reg,” Andromeda tells her before nodding in the direction of the couch, which spans the railing of the stairs and the next wall.“Let’s go sit.”

Sirius walks over and flops onto her couch, near the corner, while Regulus takes a careful seat next to him. Andromeda grabs a seat on the other side to face them, although still very close. Nymphadora positions herself in her lap.

“So, what’s new with you both?”

Sirius immediately starts, “So, for one-”

“Pause,” She stops him, “This is really just directed at you, Sirius, but do not curse. I swear, don’t do it.”

“Ok, ok, no cursing,” He laughs, “But, the biggest thing in my life now is that I have a boyfriend.”

“Really?! That’s amazing!” She smiles, “Who is he?” 

“His name is Remus,” Sirius visibly blushes, “And he is the sweetest person ever, like the kind who just  _ knows _ what to say. We started actually dating mid-year last year or something like that. The line is kind of blurred, we hooked up for a while.”

“Sounds like you,” Andromeda shrugs, “What about you, Reg, anything fun?”

Regulus shakes his head, “Not really.”

“I’m not over how you’re not like 10 anymore,” She laughs, “It’s making me feel old.”

“You have a kid, Andy, you’re a little old,” Sirius points out, to which she playfully kicks him.

She’s cut off by Nymphadora wiggling and out of her grip, walking over to sit next to Regulus on the farthest side from the other two. 

He gazes down at her, rightfully a little terrified. 

“Hi!” She beams up at him, “Reglus.”

“Regulus,” He corrects, although it doesn’t seem to sink in.

“Why’s your hair like that?” She points, and he confusedly reaches up to feel his hair, sitting in the position it always is. 

“What?” He asks.

“Black is boring!” She answers, “I like purple better.”

He nods, not really knowing what to say next. Regulus can’t talk to  _ adults _ , he is not qualified for this.

“What’s that?” She points up at his cheek, where the cut on his face is finishing healing.

“A cut,” He replies simply, hoping maybe she’ll just keep going. She does. 

“Do you- do you have uhh- a dog?” She excitedly asks. 

“No,” He answers, glancing over to see Sirius and Andromeda have started talking.

“Oh, me too!” She smiles, “Dad says no.”

She catches him off guard and stands up on the couch, putting her hands on his shoulder to balance herself. She leans over to the side and looks at Sirius a moment before looking back at Regulus.

“Why’s his hair long?” She asks him.

“Ask him,” He says. She leans over to look at him, pausing a second before looking at Regulus.

“What’s ‘s name?” She whispers.

“Sirius,” Regulus says quietly back, and she smiles before looking back to Sirius.

“Sirius!” She calls, and Sirius looks over to her, “Why’s your hair long?”

“Uhh, I like it long?” He answers skeptically, “Your hair is as long as mine.” 

“No!” She protests, despite her hair clearly being the same length as Sirius’, “Mine is short! Right?” 

“Right,” Sirius answers, “I’m wrong, your hair is short.”

She beams, “Yeah!”

Nymphadora gets down and runs off somewhere, and Regulus looks over to Andromeda.

“How old is she?” He asks.

“Three,” She answers, “She got speech really quickly, which was fun at first, but now she loves asking questions. And blaming Ted for things, but that’s not my problem.”

“Speaking of,” Sirius starts, “Where is he?”

“Oh, he had something to work on today,” She glances at the clock on the wall, “He should be back soon, though. Neither of you have met him, have you?” 

Regulus shakes his head and Sirius says, “Nope. Why would we?”

“Sometimes I forget,” She laughs, “I don’t realize  _ how _ much of my life you guys haven’t heard.”

Footsteps come sounding back down the hallway, and Nymphadora comes clamoring back up onto the couch, sitting where she was before. She’s clearly chewing on something.

“Where’d you go, Dora?” Andromeda asks, although it sounds like she already knows the answer. “What’d you get?”

“Nothing,” She says, her mouth full.

“What’re you eating?” She quickly finishes, “Wait, don’t answer that until you swallow.”

Nymphadora finishes eating before she replies. “Nothing,” She giggles.

Andromeda sighs, smiling, “Come on, Dora. What did you have?”

“Dad gave it to me.”

“What did he give you?” She continues to ask.

Nymphadora crosses her arms and shakes her head adamantly.

“If you don’t tell me I’m going to go look,” She threatens. 

Nymphadora grabs onto Regulus’ arm, effectively scaring him half to death, looking up at him, “Tell her no!” 

Regulus gives Andromeda a pleading look, hoping she can get him out of this situation. She mouths ‘Sorry’ before looking to Nymphadora.

“Sweetheart, Regulus can’t help you,” She goes to stand up, “I’m going to look, ok?” 

“No!” She cries, burying her head into Regulus’ arm, that she still has a death grip on. He doesn’t understand why  _ he’s  _ her emotional support, he’s done nothing. 

The small girl’s hair shifts from the deep purple it was before to a blue. Regulus looks to Andromeda for an explanation as to  _ what _ that was, but he doesn’t get to ask before the door opens.

“Ted, come up here and help,” Andromeda yells, Regulus and Sirius turning around to see who must be Ted walking up the stairs.

“What’s- Oh,” He lays eyes on his daughter, clinging to and crying on Regulus, “Dora, what’s going on?” She shakes her head, and Ted sighs before walking around to sit next to her, tapping her shoulder, “Come here.” 

She listens, letting go of Regulus in favor of climbing into her father’s arms. He looks over to the two boys in front of him, “This is an unfortunate meeting, but hi, I’m Ted.”

“I’m Sirius,” Sirius gestures next to him, “This is Regulus.”

“They’re my cousins, the ones I just got in contact with,” Andromeda chimes in.

“I remember, Dromeda,” He laughs, “How could I forget?”

“I’m just making sure.”

“Don’t let me interrupt you,” He says, “As you were.”

“Regulus,” Andromeda starts, and he looks over, “Since Sirius has told me about his whole life in the past 5 years, there has to be something new with you.”

He shakes his head, “Really, there isn’t.”

“That’s impossible, you’ve started school since I left, remember?”

“Oh,” He realizes, “It’s been that long?”

She nods, “Somehow. What house are you in?”

“Guess,” He deadpans, to which she laughs. He tries to think of something else, “I play Quidditch too, if that’s fun.”

“That’s very fun!” She smiles, “What do you play?”

“Seeker,” He replies.

“Seeker is  _ hard _ ,” Ted comments, “I played beater my last two years, I could never look around for that little ball forever. Beater is much easier.”

“Beater is terrifying.”

“Reg, maybe I can figure out why you don’t like shit flying at you-” Sirius is stopped by both Regulus elbowing him and Andromeda kicking him. 

“No swearing!” Andromeda scolds, “I told you that!”

“Sorry sorry!” Sirius laughs, “God, I just got assaulted.”

“Deserved it,” Regulus smiles. 

“Ok, so I really shouldn’t ask this,” Andromeda takes a breath, the energy in the room shifting “But what happened? You know, that got you kicked out?”

Regulus looks to Sirius to explain, which he does, “Well, our mum was going crazy about something I said, I don’t even know what. She heard Reg come down the stairs, I think you know how that ended. I just decided we’re leaving, we’re out, and we did, I guess.”

“I mean, how? Your mother did nothing?”

“Our dad told her to leave it, saying we’ll come back or something,” Sirius shrugs, “I don’t really know, honestly.”

“Aunt Walburga, letting go without a fight?” Andromeda sighs, “I don’t want to jinx anything, but it sounds wrong.”

“Reg has been talking to Cissy, sporadically at least,” Sirius looks to Regulus for confirmation. He nods. 

“Cissy will be honest with you, if she’s telling you not to worry I’d trust her.”

“She’s not,” Regulus corrects her.

“Ok, well, that works too I guess,” She nervously fidgets with her hands, “Where are you staying? I don’t actually know, surprisingly.”

“My friend James’ place,” Sirius answers, “I’ve snuck over there during summers sometimes, holidays too. His parents brought both of us in, no questions.”

“That’s good, I’m glad you’re somewhere safe,” Andromeda nods, “You could have come here, you know.”

“If I knew where here was, I would’ve,” Sirius argues, “I didn’t know where  _ you _ went, Andy.”

“Ok fair point,” She laughs before looking to Ted, pointing at the girl in his arms, “Asleep?”

He shakes his head, “Don’t think so. Hey Dora?” 

Nymphadora sits back, “Hm?”

“Are you tired-”

“No! Not tired!” She doesn’t even let him finish before getting off his lap, instead climbing up on Regulus’. 

“Oh ok,” Ted laughs, “Sorry, Regulus, she’s chosen you.” 

He looks down at the girl, who is smiling up at him, “Hi!”

“Hello,” He gives her a small smile in return.

“Can I- uh, can I ask you something?” She asks.

He nods, “Sure.”

“What’s that?” She points at Sirius.

“Sirius?” Regulus puzzles, confused about what she’s asking about.

“No no,” She shakes her head, “Can he change too?”

“What?” Regulus looks confusedly up to Andromeda.

“Sirius isn’t a metamorphmagus like you, honey,” Andromeda tells her.

“Why is he purple?” She asks, holding her hand up and turning her fingertips a similar color, “I can be purple!” 

“He’s- he’s what?” Andromeda looks at Sirius, whose head is buried in his hands. Regulus can see the blush on his ears, and he puts the pieces together. 

“She caught you, Sirius,” He laughs, and Sirius leans back on the couch.

“My family just breeds nosey people, don’t they?” He jokingly rolls his eyes.

“What are you two talking about?” Andromeda asks, looking between the both of them.

“The hickeys on Sirius’ neck,” Regulus points.

“Oh my god,” Andromeda laughs, “Welcome to having kids, Sirius.”

“Wow, thanks,” He sarcastically replies.

Nymphadora laughs along, although she clearly doesn’t know what’s happening.

“Dromeda, have you offered them anything to eat, maybe tea?” Ted gets up, “You’re all just sitting here.”

Andromeda shakes her head, “Didn’t think of it.”

“You’re a horrible host,” He laughs, walking towards the kitchen before looking back, “Would you like tea, boys?”

“Sure,” Sirius answers, and Regulus nods along with his answer.

“I’ll boil some water then,” He looks to Andromeda, “See? Hospitality.”

“Oh be quiet Ted,” She rolls her eyes, smiling.

“Yeah! Be quiet!” Nymphadora rallies with her.

Ted just disappears into the kitchen, Nymphadora looking back to Regulus and poking his nose.

He just kind of stares, at her, not really understanding why that was needed. She apparently gets a kick out of it and does it again, laughing.

“Why are you poking Regulus?” Andromeda taps her on the back, “I don’t think he likes that.”

Nymphadora responds by look asking Regulus, “Do you?”

Regulus looks between her and her mother, not responding. 

“He doesn’t, Dora,” Andromeda covers for him. Nymphadora leans over and does the same to Sirius. “Dora.”

“No, she’s fine,” Sirius stops her.

Nymphadora bounces between the two of them, laughing every time. Regulus is a little confused, but watching her laugh is kind of cute. So he just lets her keep going. 

“Hey, Dora,” Andromeda says, a small sense of excitement in her voice, “Why don’t you go tell Dad about where we went today?”

“Ok!” She excitedly gets down and runs off into the kitchen, “Dad! Dad!”

Andromeda laughs, “I’m sorry, she’s a  _ little _ too much like me.”

“You think, Andy?” Sirius banters.

“Ignoring that, let’s talk about something else,” She leans back, “Any ideas?”

“I can talk your ear off about my boyfriend some more?” Sirius suggests, smiling.

“Tell me more, then.”

***

“We’re probably going to grab something for dinner, are you both staying?” Andromeda asks, “We’d love to have you, I’m making up for five years here.”

Sirius shakes his head, “Mrs. Potter asked for us not to be out past dinner. We actually probably should be going, actually, if we want to get back by then.”

Sirius gets up from the couch, Regulus following. Andromeda sighs and gets up too, “Well that sucks, but if you’re leaving I’ll see you out.”

They start walking down the stairs to the front door, and Nymphadora comes storming down the hallway.

“Where’re you going?” She asks tearfully.

“They’re leaving, Dora,” Andromeda says, “Want to come say goodbye?” 

She shakes her head, “Why’re they leaving?”

“They need to go home.”

“No!” She sobs, crossing her arms, “They should stay!”

“They can’t, sweetheart.”

Nymphadora rushes down the stairs and grabs onto Regulus’ leg, “Staying.”

Andromeda tries to urge her back up the stairs, but she doesn’t budge. “Ted!” She yells, “Come here please!”

Ted appears from down the hall, going to ask what’s wrong before laying eyes on what’s happening. He sighs and walks down the stairs, squeezing by Andromeda and tapping Nymphadora on the shoulder. 

“No!” She yells, her hair beginning to shift like it did last time, this time to orange.

“Come on, Dora,” He calmly tells her, “They’ll come back soon.”

“When?”

“Soon,” He repeats, trying to pull her back. He looks up to Regulus, “Sorry.”

Regulus just shrugs, kind of accepting whatever is happening right now. Ted manages to pry her from his leg, picking her up despite her protest. Once she’s in his arms she buries her head in his shoulder.

“Shh, shh,” He tries to calm her, “We’re going to go get ready to eat, ok?”

She nods, and he heads back up the stairs, turning around when he gets to the top. “I guess this kind of came full circle, huh?” He laughs, “Didn’t give you a proper hello or goodbye.”

“How symbolic,” Sirius laughs.

“Well, it was great meeting you boys, I guess Dromeda wasn’t lying that she actually had family,” He looks to Andromeda, who rolls her eyes, “But you’re welcome to come back whenever.”

“Thank you,” Sirius thanks for the both of them, smiling up at Ted. Nymphadora says something and Ted walks off, whispering something to her.

Andromeda pulls Sirius into a hug first, “It was amazing that I got to see you both again,” She moves to give Regulus one, “Definitely stay in contact, I want to see you at least a couple of times more before you go back to school.”

“Definitely,” Sirius nods, moving so Andromeda can open the door. The two of them walk out, Andromeda waving.

“See you both soon, guys,” She bids her goodbye.

“Bye Andy!” Sirius waves.

“Bye,” Regulus gives her a small smile, pulling the door shut behind him.

Sirius, beaming ear to ear, looks over to Regulus, “Back home we go?”

Regulus laughs, “Where else?”


	7. You’re Not My Mother

A couple of days go by, the excitement of seeing Andromeda again slowly wearing away. Regulus has been talking to Narcissa and since then her couple of letters have been a little more concerning. Mentions of his increasingly angry mother don’t sit well with him, and he’s gotten this irrational fear she’s going to find him and take him back. He absolutely does not want that, not just because she’d probably beat him to death, but he also likes it here. He’s starting to get used to it.

As a result of the recent paranoia, he’s been spending more time out of his room the past couple of days, if not with Sirius than simply in the living room or in the piano room with the door open. No one has mentioned anything, thankfully, as the last thing Regulus wants is someone to point out that he’s scared of something that probably won’t happen.

He’s now sitting, leaning against the arm of the couch while Sirius and Remus sit cuddled up to one another on the other side. James is sitting on the floor, neck-deep in some sort of card game. The book he’s reading isn’t terribly interesting, but he’s running out of things to do, so it’ll do.

Surprisingly, there’s a knock on the door, although Regulus wasn’t aware that they were expecting anyone. 

“Who is that?” James yells, leaning to the side to see around the corner. 

“I’m answering it now, James,” His mother sighs, the door creaking as she opens it, “Oh, hello-”

“Euphemia, you have my sons?”

Regulus’ whole body goes cold. That’s his mother, he’d recognize that voice anywhere. He looks panickedly over to Sirius, who is looking at him with a similar fear. Remus leans down and whispers something, Sirius’ answer causing his eyes to widen. 

“I do believe you kicked them out, Walburga,” Mrs. Potter calmly replies.

“I do believe they’re my sons,” She shoots back, that terrifying tone right before she blows up, “Where are they?”

Regulus feels like his heart is going to beat right out of his chest, his breathing effectively stopping as he waits for her response.

“They’re perfectly safe and happy here, Walburga,” Mrs. Potter responds, but Regulus knows his mother doesn’t take no for an answer. 

“I asked where are they,” She dryly clarifies, “Let me see them.”

“I’m sorry, but they’re-”

“Where are they?” His mother’s tone turns sharp, and Regulus flinches away even though he can’t even see her. A glance in Sirius’ direction assures him he’s not the only one terrified. Although, Sirius has the constant whispering of Remus in his ear, who is clutching onto him pretty tightly. 

“As I said, they’re fine here,” Mrs. Potter firmly maintains, “If that’s all you need-”

“Excuse me, but that’s  _ not _ what I asked,” She spits back, “Bring them here, they’re my sons, Euphemia.” 

“Not after you banished them from your house,” Mrs. Potter replies, her tone much calmer than his mother’s.

“I require a word with both of them,” His mother brushes right by Mrs. Potter’s comment, “Especially my youngest.”

If he was terrified before, he’s practically shaking from fear now upon hearing  _ he’s  _ the target here. His book drops out of his hand, on no account of his own, rather his arms defensively wrapping around his stomach. He can’t tell if it’s out of fear or the fact that he feels like he’s going to be sick. Probably both.

“I don’t believe you’re going to speak to either of them,” Mrs. Potter firmly denies, “So please, you’re free to leave.”

“No,” She retorts, “I am asking to see them.”

“They don’t want to see you,” Mrs. Potter replies, “They’re safe and happy here, and if they want to go back, I’m sure they’ll do so.”

“I want to hear that from them,” His mother half yells, clearly restraining from  _ screaming _ as Mrs. Potter. 

Mrs. Potter audibly sighs and does exactly what Regulus was hoping she wouldn’t. “Regulus, Sirius, come here for a moment dears.”

“Nope,” James immediately gets up, holding out a hand for the two of them to stay. He runs over to Mrs. Potter around the corner, “Hi!”

“Who’re you?” His mother practically sneers.

Mrs. Potter answers before James can, “Do  _ not  _ talk to my son that way.”

“Until you let me see  _ my _ sons, I believe I have a right to,” His mother scoffs, “All I ask is I hear it from them.”

“James, get the two of them, won’t you?” Mrs. Potter asks, “Just for a moment, that’ll be it.”

“They don’t want to.”

“I’m sure they don’t, just listen to me. At least one of them,” Mrs. Potter maintains, James walking back and peering around the corner.

“I need one of you,” He parrots, “Any takers?”

_ Don’t panic don’t panic _ . 

James walks around and holds out a hand to Regulus, “I don’t have a choice, I’m sorry.”

Regulus sighs, although he really isn’t taking in enough air for it to qualify as one. He grabs onto James’ hand hard, standing up. He’s  _ not _ very solid on his feet, and he’s only standing because James is helping. 

He hears Sirius whisper to Remus, “Let me up.” 

Remus listens, also getting up behind him. All 4 of them are going, apparently. 

James leads Regulus with him, Sirius and Remus pushing their way in front. The glance Regulus gives up to Remus catches his extremely confused expression. He really didn’t need to get sucked into this.

“Regulus, Sirius,” His mother dons her fake sweet voice, “Come stand here.”

Sirius urges Remus to stand back, but James moves to wrap his arm around Regulus’ shoulders. Regulus can’t look up, he refuses to look at her.

“Right there is fine, dears,” Mrs. Potter says, and Regulus half looks up to see her standing just off to the side, although she doesn’t look glued to the spot. Even knowing she’d let nothing happen, it’s not easing any fears. 

“Is Euphemia lying to me?” She asks, “Do you really want to be here?”

“Yeah, we do,” Sirius shoots back, somehow totally shedding the fear he was dripping in a few seconds ago.

“You do not speak to your mother-”

“You’re not my mother,” Sirius cuts her off, “And neither Reg nor I are going anywhere with you.”

“Let me hear that from him then, he’s 14, he can speak for himself.” He can feel his mother staring at him, “Do you agree with your brother?”

Regulus nods. “Yes,” He quietly answers.

“Look up at me when you speak!” She screams, catching all of them totally off guard, Regulus flinching so hard he would have probably stumbled without James. James squeezes him tighter. 

“Walburga,” Mrs. Potter steps in, “That is not how you should be speaking to him.”

“He’s my son, and my sons shouldn’t be rude,” She seethes, “Especially my youngest. Regulus, I expect more.”

He forces himself to look up at her, and it feels like he’s back at Grimmauld. Her, standing threateningly above him, as Sirius tries to act as a barrier. It’s all so familiar. 

He’s too busy processing that horrible memory to say anything, much to her annoyance. 

“Answer me,” She crosses her arms, “Now.”

He physically cannot answer her.

“We’re done, thank you Walburga,” She goes to shut the door. 

His mother puts a hand out to stop it, “I’ve asked you of one thing, let him answer.”

“No,” Mrs. Potter shakes her head, “This is quite enough.”

“Fine, have my traitorous sons, no use to me anyway,” She turns around, her dress flying behind her as she quickly walks off. 

Mrs. Potter immediately shuts the door and turns back to the two of them, “Are you both alright?”

Sirius takes a deep breath, “I just need a minute.” He turns around and heads up the stairs, Remus following after him. Mrs. Potter then looks to Regulus.

“Let’s go into the other room, get you sitting,” She says, placing a hand on his back and guiding him into the living room. He takes a seat with James next to him, whose arm is still wrapped around him. 

Mrs. Potter crouches in front of him, “Look at me, dear.” He looks at her, “You’re safe here, alright? She’s not here anymore.”

He nods, his breathing hitching as he tries to take a breath. Tears stream down his face, more out of shock than anything. It’s too much. It’s  _ way _ too much. 

Mrs. Potter moves to take a seat next to him, “Would you like a hug, or would you like to just sit?”

“Sit,” He whispers. He doesn’t want all that right now, James’ arm is grounding enough.

“Is my arm alright?”

“Mhm,” Regulus nods, James rubbing his shoulder lightly. 

They sit in silence for a minute, Regulus letting whatever just happened to sink in. Tears fall into his lap, but he makes no effort to wipe them away. Eventually, he sits up a little more, looking over at Mrs. Potter with a patient look on her face. She smiles at him. 

“Are you feeling alright?” She asks.

“No,” He answers honestly. He feels horrible.

“Is there anything I can get you, dear?”

He shakes his head, leaning a little bit against James. James lets him.

“I’m going to check on your brother, I’ll be right back, dear,” She stands up, “Stay with James.”

She heads up the stairs and he and James sit in silence for a moment. But even in his cloudy headspace, he knows the silence won’t last long.

“She’s scary,” He comments, a certain lightheartedness to his voice.

Regulus nods, “A little.”

A moment more of silence passes. “How’d you  _ live _ with that?”

Regulus shrugs, “It’s just normal.”

“Fucking shouldn’t be,” James mumbles, “I’m glad we stole you. Now you get to spend time with my comforting presence.” 

Regulus gives him a small smile. He knows James is joking, but his presence is honestly kind of comforting. He would have thought he’d have gone with Sirius, considering their friends. 

“Why aren't you with Sirius?” Regulus quietly asks, his eyes wandering elsewhere.

“Because I’m with you,” James looks at him, confused, “Sirius has Remus, and Mum, at the moment. I’m not going to leave you in favor of him.”

He shakes his head slightly, still not quite understanding. James has actually known Regulus for a week, he’s been best friends with Sirius for almost 6 years. There’s a little bit of an imbalance there. 

“Not taking no for an answer,” James smiles, “You’re kinda like, my little brother, right? So that means I get to help you.”

Regulus gives him another small smile. He likes that idea, of also being  _ James’ _ younger brother. The more family that he can get who don’t hate him, the better.

The door opens again, and Regulus immediately freezes and tenses up. It definitely isn’t her, but that doesn’t mean the thought doesn’t bulldoze through his head. 

“Dad?” James yells.

“Yeah?” Mr. Potter replies, walking over and appearing around the corner, “What’s up?”

“Just wanted to make sure it’s you.”

He stares for a moment, “Regulus, are you alright kid?”

Regulus glances over and nods. Mr. Potter goes to keep asking questions when footsteps come running down the starts.

“Fleamont,” Mrs. Potter calls, “Come here.”

“Alright Mia, let me hang my coat first,” He walks back off to hang his coat on the rack and head back up the stairs with her. James looks back to Regulus.

“How’re you doing?” He asks as if it’s going to be a different answer. 

“Still bad,” Regulus answers.

“Bad how?” James questions, “I mean like, I know what happened and all that, but you know what I mean.”

“Yeah,” Regulus hesitates, “I just feel sick, I don’t know.”

“Hmm,” James looks off elsewhere, “Want some tea? I can make tea, I do have that ability.”

Regulus contemplates it for a moment, “Sure.”

“Wanna stay here or come with me?”

“I’ll go with you,” Regulus answers, and James moves to grab his hand instead. They walk into the kitchen and James fills the kettle with water, letting go of Regulus to do so. Regulus walks to lean against the counter. 

Once James turns the stove on he turns around to face Regulus, “I’m glad you wanted tea because it’s the only thing I can make. I’m a hazard in the kitchen.”

Regulus lets out a small laugh, “Sounds right.”

“Hey, no taking absolutely correct shots at me,” James laughs, looking over to the stairs. Regulus follows his gaze, seeing Sirius and Remus coming down the stairs. 

“I’m making tea!” James points behind him.

“You’re going to set something on fire,” Remus laughs, “You are not trusted.”

“I am  _ very  _ trusted.”

Sirius walks up to stand beside Regulus, “You alright?”

Regulus nods, glancing off to the floor. Sirius doesn’t say anything else, drawing him into a hug. Regulus loosely hugs back, knowing this is Sirius’ form of comfort. It works, though.

“We’re good,” Sirius whispers, seemingly partially trying to convince himself, “We’re safe, we’re home.”

“Mhm,” Regulus agrees, Sirius lingering for a moment before stepping back. 

Sirius stares at him before ruffling his  _ damn hair _ . 

“Stop it!” Regulus laughs, pushing him away.

“It’ll never not be funny,” Sirius smiles, and Regulus rolls his eyes. Sirius floats himself back over to Remus, as he somehow always does. He stands with his back to him, wrapping Remus’ arms around him. Remus just goes with it.

“Question,” James looks at Sirius and Remus, “Have either of you talked to Peter recently?” 

“I wrote him towards the beginning of the summer,” Remus offers.

“I did too,” James adds, “But after that?”

“He’s away, remember?” Sirius reminds him, “I’ve told you that every time you’ve asked.”

“Oh yeah yeah yeah,” James nods, “Right, that makes sense.”

“He gets back at the end of July,” Sirius says, “We’ll update him then.”

James nods before turning back to the kettle, which has started to whistle. He takes it off the burner and looks around confused. 

“Did you not take cups out?” Remus asks. 

“Uh, no,” James goes into a cabinet and takes out 4 cups, “There are 5 of us, right?” 

“Yes,” Sirius laughs, “You can’t count either?” 

“Shut up,” James grabs the kettle, but Remus stops him.

“Put the teabags in first,” Remus instructs, “So you don’t overfill them.”

“I knew that,” James does what he told him to before pouring in the water, “There!” 

“Wow, you’ve mastered a very basic skill,” Sirius sarcastically congratulates.

James turns around, a triumphant look on his face, “Well, while that sits, what should we talk about?” 

“Always have to be talking,” Remus rolls his eyes.

“You got it,” James laughs, “Question of the day, what is the best color of sock?”


	8. Best Wishes, Narcissa Black

“Reg, Cissy sent another letter!” Sirius yells from the kitchen. Regulus gets up from the piano and heads into the other room. Sirius is holding the letter out from the chair he’s sitting in across from Mr. Potter. Strangely James isn’t down here. 

“You’re awfully popular,” Mr. Potter comments, smiling up from his newspaper. 

Regulus just shrugs, taking the letter from Sirius back into the other room as he opens it. He grabs a seat on the bench and pulls out the letter

_ Regulus Black, _

_ I cannot believe your mother did that. I believe it was out of desperation, as our family is starting to doubt that you and your brother were the problems. They’re starting to suspect it’s her, as you’ve never been one for rebellion before. I didn’t think she would find and show up there, however, at least not herself. I’m sorry I couldn’t offer more of a warning.  _

_ I know negotiations will be tight, but I want to see you. I know you’re writing back, but I want to talk to you. Face to face. However you would feel most comfortable, I’m sure I can help arrange it. Lucius’ and my doors are always open.  _

_ I have no strong compulsion to see Sirius, but you’re welcome to bring him if you would like.  _

_ I’m hoping to see you soon.  _

_ Best wishes, _

_ Narcissa Black _

Regulus immediately gets up and heads upstairs, ignoring Sirius asking him what it was about. He pulls out his parchment and quill, getting started on a response. 

He settles for somewhere public, knowing at least they’ll be other people around. He’s much more comfortable with that than her flat. He’s sure it’s great, but his mother knows where it is. 

His handwriting is atrocious, but he finishes the letter, closes it, and seals it within 5 minutes. 

He heads back downstairs and hands the finished letter to the Potter’s bird, who flies out the window with it. Regulus smiles, satisfied with that whole experience. 

“Sirius,” He turns around, Sirius looking up at him, “Where’s Mrs. Potter?”

“Uhh, check the laundry room?” He shrugs, looking to Mr. Potter for confirmation.

“Don’t ask me, I have no idea,” He answers, “I know nothing about this house.”

“Fair,” Sirius looks back to Regulus, “Check there, maybe ask James.”

Regulus nods and walks off into the laundry room, where Mrs. Potter is folding clothes, humming along to the radio in the corner. Her eye catches him walking in and she turns around, “Oh, hello Regulus!” 

“Hi,” He hesitates, “Uh, so, my cousin wrote me. I’m going to try to go see her, sometime next week. Is that ok?”

“Of course dear,” She smiles, “Where are you going?”

“I suggested one of the restaurants off Diagon Alley, but I just sent the letter,” He replies.

“Do you need a way there?”

“I asked if Narcissa could come here and take me,” Regulus tells her.

“Well, if she can’t, I’d be happy to take you,” She says as she goes back to folding, “I’m not doing anything all week.”

“Thank you so much,” He smiles, turning back to head out into the kitchen.

“What’re you running around about?” Sirius leans back in his chair, looking at Regulus upside down.

“None of your business,” Regulus replies curtly, grabbing a roll out of the basket on the counter. 

“Wow, shutdown by my own brother,” Sirius dramatically rolls his eyes, “Pass me one of those please.”

“Get it yourself,” Regulus banters back, walking off up the stairs. Sirius groans, but Regulus hears the chair against the ground as Sirius gets up. Regulus heads back into his own room, happily grabbing one of his books and taking a seat on his bed.

Crumbs fall onto the bed as he takes a bite into the roll he grabbed, but strangely he doesn’t care. He knows it’s fine, no one’s going to care.

It’s a nice feeling.

***

“Regulus dear, the door is for you!” Mrs. Potter yells up the stairs, Regulus rushing out of his room and down the stairs. “Don’t fall.”

“I won’t,” He replies, not even thinking about it. He slides his shoes on and opens the door, met by the smiling face of Narcissa.

“Hello, Regulus!” She opens her arms, and Regulus gives her a hug, “It’s so good to see you!” 

“You too,” He smiles back, hearing more footsteps down the stairs. He turns around to see Sirius, a mess, standing at the bottom of the stairs and pointing at Narcissa.

“Since when were you showing up?” He asks, half laughing.

“Since the beginning of the week,” Narcissa answers, “I’m stealing your brother for a couple of hours, don’t miss him too much.”

“I’ll miss him dearly,” Sirius sarcastically gushes, “Bye Reg!”

“Bye Sirius,” Regulus leans around the door, “Bye, Mrs. Potter.”

“Have fun, dear,” She smiles at him.

He walks out and shuts the door behind him, Narcissa and Regulus walking out to the sidewalk before she offers him a hand.

“I’m apperating us there,” She says, and he takes her hand, “Close your eyes.” 

He listens, and all of a sudden they’ve appeared just off the street they’re going on. Surprisingly, it wasn’t as jarring as it normally is.

“You’re good,” He comments, and she smiles at him.

“Why thank you,” She puts a hand on his back and guides him as they walk down the street, “It’s my personal skill, apparating without having anyone vomit.”

“A challenge.”

They walk in and get seated, Narcissa sitting in the chair across the small table from him. They order something to drink, Narcissa talking first.

“First and foremost, how are you doing?” She asks, that signature motherly tone creeping into her voice.

“I’m fine,” He shrugs, “A little shaken from my mum’s visit, but otherwise fine.”

“Good, perfect,” She sighs, “I know you write that you’re fine, but hearing you say it is good. How is your whole living situation going?”

“Good,” He lets a smile creep across his face, “Really good actually.”

“Tell me about it,” She urges.

“I mean, I wasn’t too sure about it at first, just a little weird,” Regulus says.

“Naturally,” She nods, “You didn’t know them.”

“But, I don’t know, this is stupid,” He stops himself before he says something sappy.

“No no,” She objects, “It’s not stupid, just say what you’re thinking.”

“Well, it’s like,” He struggles for the words for a moment, “Like I have a family, if that makes sense. I mean, of course, you’re family but- does that- make sense?”

“Yes,” She assures him, “That makes total sense. I mean, I’m glad I fall under your accepted family category, but I know our family isn’t the best.”

Regulus nods, “Just a little.”

She laughs, “But, I think it’s phenomenal that you feel like you fit into their family. As much as I care about Sirius, I knew he would be alright, he’s- well, Sirius. I was worried you would fall on the outside, considering you’d never met them as Sirius had.”

“Me too,” Regulus admits, “But, James has been really nice, Mr. Potter will spend time with whoever is around, and Mrs. Potter is- well, motherly I guess.”

Narcissa smiles, “You said goodbye to her when we left.”

He looks at her, slightly confused, “Of course.”

“Regulus,” Narcissa laughs, “You don’t talk to  _ anyone _ if you don’t have to, what happened to you?”

“Narcissa,” He groans, “You’re worse than Sirius.”

“It’s a competition, and I’m winning.”

“It shouldn’t be a competition,” He argues, “Embarrassing Regulus isn’t fun.”

“No, I think it is,” She shakes her head, “Who else am I going to embarrass?”

“No one,” He suggests.

“Not possible,” She says, sitting in silence for a moment, “Anything else that’s new?”

Regulus shakes his head, “No, not really.”

“Have you talked to any of your friends?” She asks.

“No,” Regulus shakes his head again, “I don’t want to get anyone in trouble.”

“That’s probably smart,” Narcissa admits, “It’s not unlikely that things have spread, although I haven’t spoken to anyone other than Lucius.”

“What’d he say?”

“He’s been indifferent about it,” She shrugs, “Maybe because I yelled at him for the first two days, so he stopped having an opinion on it. But, regardless, he and I agree as long as you’re safe there’s nothing to worry about.”

Regulus nods, both of them thanking the waitress as she sets the drinks on the table. They order their food and turn back to one another.

“How has wedding planning been?” Regulus asking, taking a sip of his water.

“Oh my goodness, I’m glad you brought it up,” Narcissa smiles, “I’ve decided I’m doing it alone, Bella is no help and my mother and I have very different taste. I have to go pick out flowers next week sometime, I think Aunt Walburga is taking me.”

“Ooo,” Regulus cringes, “Why?”

“I don’t know, I’m going to try to get out of it,” Narcissa groans.

“Maybe take Lucius?” Regulus suggests.

“That’s what I was thinking,” She agrees, “But my biggest thing is I have to go dress shopping in a couple of weeks.”

“No hundred-year-old hand me downs?”

“They tried, no chance,” She laughs, “I married pureblood, I think that’s good enough.”

“You say that like you didn’t want to,” Regulus comments.

“Well, as much as our family would be furious if I said this, but that was never my top priority,” She shrugs, “I mean, of course, it was a goal, and I love Lucius, that’s why we’re  _ getting married _ , but- well, eh.”

“Eh, that sums it up well,” He agrees, “Not quite a no.”

“‘Not quite a no’, that’s right,” Narcissa sighs, “We had a family dinner the other day, and it was so weird without the two of you. It was just me, Lucius, Bella, and Rodolphus. Bella talked the _ entire _ time.”

“Happy I wasn’t there,” Regulus puts a hand over his mouth, “I didn’t say that.”

“I heard nothing.”

“Good,” He laughs, “I don’t hate her, it’s just…”

“She, like, tormented you as a child,” Narcissa states bluntly, “ _ She _ didn’t mean anything bad, but that doesn’t mean she didn’t curse you all the time. And you and her just don’t get along.”

“She’s way too much for me,” Regulus shakes his head, “Like Sirius times 10.”

“Speaking of,” She starts, “How is Sirius doing? Obviously, he’s in one piece, I saw him. But other than that anything?”

Regulus shakes his head, “No, he’s fine. Living with his best friend has been good for him I guess.”

“But it’s not weird for you?”

“No, Narcissa,” He jokingly rolls his eyes, “I’m fine, I promise.”

“Ok, ok, I just want to make sure!”

Silence falls over the table, although not uncomfortable. 

For once, Regulus breaks it, “Tell me more about wedding planning.”

***

Regulus knocks on the door to the Potter’s, Narcissa standing behind him. It opens only a couple of seconds later, Mrs. Potter standing on the other side. 

“Hello dear!” She smiles, stepping out of the way to let him inside. 

“Thank you for letting me take him, Mrs. Potter,” Narcissa thanks. 

“Oh of course!” She replies, “It’s no problem, I’m glad you got to see one another.” 

“Keep in touch, Reg,” Narcissa says, waving as she walks off. 

“Bye, Narcissa,” He waves back, and Mrs. Potter shuts the door. 

“Have fun, dear?” She asks, going back into the kitchen where it looks like she’s preparing something. 

“Yeah,” He kicks his shoes off. 

“Good, James and Sirius I believe are outside, if you want to join them-”

She’s cut off by the back door flying open, revealing Sirius standing in the doorway, holding a broom in his right hand. 

“Reg!” He cheers, “You’re back!” 

“I was gone for an hour and a half,” Regulus deadpans. 

“I still missed you,” Sirius dramatically pouts before James comes up behind him. 

“Want to play with us, Reg?” James asks, panting. 

Regulus’ heart drops when he realizes what is still at home. “My broom is at home.” 

“Funny you mention that,” Mrs. Potter chimes in, grabbing something off the ground and holding it out, “This came for you today.”

“Wh-” He stops when he looks at the shape of the package. It’s a broom, no doubt. He walks over and grabs it from her, reading the letter on the package.

_ Stole it at our family dinner the other day. I know you need it. _

_ ~ Narcissa _

He smiles, tearing off the packaging to his broom and holding it out in front of him. He looks over to James and Sirius.

“I’ll be out in a minute.”


	9. You Deserve Nothing

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> cw: child abuse

_ Regulus’ eyes fly open, the room around him scarily familiar for all the wrong reasons. It’s his bedroom. At 12 Grimmauld Place.  _

_ He carefully gets out of bed, noting the open door on the other side of the room. As his surroundings fade-in, the sound of yelling downstairs grows louder, two voices he could identify anywhere. _

_ He walks down the hall, standing at the top of the stairs and contemplating going down for a moment. A particularly distressing yell convinces him that he needs to go down there, so he slowly starts to make his way down the stairs.  _

_ She hears him. _

_ Without a word, his mother meets him halfway down and grabs onto the collar of his shirt. She drags him down the rest of the way, him barely keeping up. She shoves him hard against the wall, pressing her wand up to his neck as he desperately tries to back further away from it. There’s unfortunately nowhere else to go. _

_ “Stop it!” Sirius yells, “Leave him-” _

_ Crucio. Regulus hits the ground. _

_ “Talk to me like that one more time,” She seethes, “And you will be out on the street tonight.” _

_ “Then let me leave!” Sirius screams, painfully loud, “I don’t want to be here for a second fucking longer-” _

_ Crucio. Harder this time. _

_ “Then get out!” His mother’s voice booms, “You are not deserving of this roof over your head! You deserve nothing!” _

_ Sirius runs back upstairs, leaving Regulus writhing in pain at his mother’s feet. He pushes himself to sit up against the wall, although just barely. His mother just stands there, waiting for Sirius to come back down the stairs. _

_ When he does, he has a bag with him, that’s it. _

_ “Sirius,” Regulus croaks out, paying for it when his mother kicks him. _

_ What’s worse is Sirius barely gives him a passing glance before walking out the door.  _

_ His mother crouches down in front of him and jabs her wand at him, “Even he doesn’t want you.” _

_ And she hits him with Crucio again. _

Regulus bolts awake, dripping in sweat and desperately trying to catch his breath. He looks around, panicked. Where is he? The room is too dark, he can’t tell. It doesn’t look like Grimmauld, but it feels like it. And that’s room enough for fear.

His wand. He needs his wand.

He feels around on the nightstand next to him, not there. He looks on the floor, not there. He tries to feel around on the bed around him, not there. He squints around the room, but he’s not thinking clearly enough to register any of it.

He gives up looking, pulling his knees up to his chest to bury his head in. He’s processing too much, he needs to just  _ not _ look at anything. 

He sits there for a while, although he has no idea how long. It feels like forever, where he’s shaking and crying, terrified of something that’s not even real.

Normally, when he was young he’d climb into Sirius’ bed, who would hold him and tell him it’s alright. But Regulus isn’t 5 anymore. He convinces himself he doesn’t need that.

Although realistically, he really does.

He doesn’t leave, though, staying in his room, attempting to be quiet as possible. He needs to know what time it is, but he can’t find his wand to light up the room enough to see the clock. He searches around again without getting up. No luck.

Finally, he gives up, but he doesn’t lay back down. He knows he won’t fall asleep. 

So he just sits, shaking and sobbing. For what feels like hours.

He hasn’t had a nightmare like that in weeks.

***

James wakes up with an oddly familiar weight on his chest, looking to see Sirius sleeping on top of him. Funny, considering he vividly remembers not only falling asleep on his side but without Sirius. 

Almost on cue, his mother knocks on the door, “James, Sirius, breakfast!” 

Sirius groans, looking at James.

“When did you get here?” James asks, laughing.

Sirius shrugs, “What do you mean? I’ve always been here.”

“Oh shut up,” James jokingly rolls his eyes, Sirius begrudgingly getting up. James follows, both of them heading down the stairs to see the already set double breakfast table. His mother decided to add the second table for meals every time a week ago, as 5 of them couldn’t fit at a 4 person table.

They grabbed their normal seats next to one another, facing into the kitchen. James always sits across from his mother, and Sirius across from Regulus. His father walks in and takes his prideful spot at the head of the table.

“Good morning boys,” He smiles.

“Hey dad!”

“Hi Mr. Potter.”

His mother sets the final plate of food on the table and looks up at the stairs, causing James and Sirius to glance back as well. Neither of them sees anything, strangely, and just look back to start filling up their plates. 

A minute or so later heavy footsteps come down the stairs, and James turns around to see Regulus, his eyes glued to the ground. He walks around and takes his seat, not saying anything as he grabs concerningly small portions of food. He also looks sick, eyes slightly puffy and very red. He looks like he didn’t sleep at all last night.

“Are you ok, Reg?” Sirius asks, clearly also just as concerned. 

Regulus doesn’t even glance up, nodding slightly. His mother takes a seat next to him, looking over with a similar level of concern. She, however, doesn’t mention anything.

“Are you sure?” Sirius asks again.

“Yes,” Regulus shoots annoyedly back at him. 

His father looks like he’s going to say something, but his mother beats him to it, “No, Fleamont.”

They eat in silence for the better of five minutes, James itching to say something but thinking better of it. The tension over the table is tight, clearly there’s something bothering Regulus. Of course, in natural Regulus fashion, he doesn’t say a thing.

Eventually, after Regulus pushes around the food on his plate for a minute, Mrs. Potter bumps him with her elbow to grab his attention. He jumps, somehow scared of the small bump.

“Sorry dear,” His mother quickly apologizes, “But if you aren’t hungry, you don’t have to stay. You’re welcome to go back up to your room if you like, with or without your plate.”

“Thank you,” He says, voice barely above a whisper. He gets up, cleans off his plate, and sets it in the sink. He heads back up the stairs, and Sirius looks to Mrs. Potter.

“Can I be excused too?” 

She sighs, “Yes dear, don’t bother your brother too much.”

He nods and gets up, James following. They clean their plates and put them in the sink, Sirius not acknowledging James at all. He heads up the stairs and James follows behind him, although Sirius is already in Regulus’ room with the door closed by the time he gets over there. 

He puts his ear to the door, managing to hear their conversation.

“There’s obviously something wrong,” Sirius says, “What happened last night? You were fine yesterday.”

“Lay off it,” Regulus warns, his voice awfully horse.

“Did you have a nightmare or something?”

“I said lay off it Sirius,” Regulus maintains, “Get out.”

“No, not until you tell me what’s wrong,” Sirius shoots back, beginning to mimic Regulus’ annoyance. 

“And I’m not, so get out,” Regulus demands. 

“Yes you are,” Sirius says, “I want to help, I don’t want to see you like this, and something is clearly up.”

“I don’t need help,” He denies, “Especially yours.”

“Especially mine?” Sirius questions, “I’m your older-“

“I don’t care!” Regulus yells, audibly frustrated, “You’re two years older than I am, I’m not a baby.”

“I’m not saying you’re a baby,” Sirius argues, “Although you’re acting like one shutting people out.”

“Did you ever think, Sirius, I don’t want your help?” Regulus shoots back, “I. Am. Fine. I don’t need you telling me anything.”

“You? Are not fine,” Sirius retorts, “And I would believe you if this doesn’t happen  _ every time _ you’re upset.”

“Because that’s what I want!”

“It’s not what’s good for you!” Sirius sighs, “God, if I leave you alone you’ll hide up here, you won’t eat anything, and you’ll make yourself sick. Reg, you haven’t changed.”

Regulus annoyedly sighs, not saying anything.

“You look like you’re gonna cry-“

“Shut up! Get out!” He yells, and James can hear that what Sirius said broke him, because it sounds like he’s crying.

“Reg-“

“I mean it,” Regulus forces out, “Leave me alone.”

Sirius walks back towards the door and James steps back enough to let him come out. Sirius walks out and slams the door behind him pretty hard. Even James jumps. 

“Sirius,” James says, but Sirius blows right past him. James goes to head into their room after him but his mother sets a hand on James’ shoulder. 

“Who is yelling? Why did a door slam?” She asks. 

“Regulus and Sirius were arguing,” James tells her, “Reg sounded like he was crying.”

“Oh goodness,” She sighs, “Thank you, James.”

“You’re welcome,” He smiles before heading into his and Sirius’ room. 

He shuts the door behind him, seeing Sirius laying on his bed with his head in his hands. 

“Sirius,” James says again, “What happened?”

“You heard what happened,” Sirius sighs, sitting up and pulling his legs in, “You were eavesdropping.”

“Ok fair,” James takes a seat on the bed, “But I wasn’t in there. So, to you, what happened?” 

“God, I mean Reg looks like he didn’t sleep, and I’m sure he had a nightmare and couldn’t fall back asleep,” Sirius falls back against the pillows, “Normally he’d come find me, when we’re home, and granted it’s been a while since that’s happened. But I just- I want to help him because I know Reg just won’t mention it until he’s physically ill.”

“Mum is in there now if that’s any help,” James offers.

“Good,” Sirius sighs, “Reg and I don’t see eye to eye on like- comfort. For one, he  _ hates  _ when people touch him, and, well you’ve met me.”

“Yeah,” James laughs, “You’re the touchiest person I know. I don’t know how that house produced the two of you, you’re so different.”

“Most siblings are, James,” Sirius sits back up, “My cousins are three totally different people, despite all growing up exactly the same.”

“How?” James asks, “Like literally how does that happen?”

“First to second kid stuff, I guess?” Sirius shrugs, “I literally have no idea. I was always the rebellious one, so that had something to do with it.”

“I guess, right?” James agrees.

Sirius shifts uncomfortably, clearly still not talking about something.

“What else is bothering you?” James asks.

“You sound like Moony,” He laughs halfheartedly, “But it’s nothing, really, I just hate arguing with him. We’re against enough, the last thing we need is to argue.”

“Speaking of Moony,” James changes the subject, not even on purpose, “Did you send him your letter?”

“Shit, no I didn’t,” Sirius grabs the letter off the nightstand, “Come with me.”

“Off we go!” 

***

Regulus wipes away tears, hearing the door click open and almost yelling at the person who walked in, but he stops when he sees Mrs. Potter standing in the doorway.

“Hello dear,” She softly shuts the door behind her, “May I come sit?”

He nods, moving back to give her some room. She sits in front of him, although he doesn’t look up at her. He’s always causing her a problem, and he feels horrible about it.

“What happened, dear?” She quietly asks, putting a hand on his knee.

“Nothing,” He whispers, wiping away more tears. The effort is in vain, though.

“Then why are you crying?” She questions, her tone still soft, “Did one of the boys do something?”

“Sirius,” Is all he says.

“What did Sirius do?” She keeps questioning. 

He shakes his head, “We just- got into an argument. I’m sorry.”

“Don’t apologize, dear,” She says, “It’s not your fault. Was it about this morning?”

He nods.

She sighs, “I told him not to be too hard on you, I suppose he didn’t listen. Do you want me to stay? I don’t have to if you don’t want.”

“Can you?” He asks, looking up at her. After last night, he’d rather not be alone if someone is offering the company. 

“Of course,” She smiles, “Would you like to talk about what happened? Last night or this morning, but we don’t have to.”

Regulus shrugs, “I had a rough night.”

“Rough how?” 

“Nightmare,” He admits. He can’t believe he’s telling her this.

“Ah,” She nods, “I know I can’t provide you much comfort now, but you’re always welcome to come and find me.”

He’s never going to do that.

“I see your face, I know you don’t like that idea,” She gives him a small laugh, “You’re also welcome to go down into the piano room if it helps. Or just walk around, whatever helps. Alright?” 

He nods, those options are much better.

“As for Sirius,” She sighs, “I know it doesn’t seem like it, but he just wants to help.”

“I don’t want his help,” Regulus replies, a little too fast. He didn’t mean to shoot back at her. 

“I know,” She says calmly, despite his reply, “Is there a reason why?”

“Him and I just,” Regulus takes a deep breath so he doesn’t get upset, “He likes, you know, big hugs and talking about everything. I don’t all the time.”

“What do you prefer?”

“Just, like, sitting I guess,” He shrugs, “Being with someone but not talking if that makes sense.”

“I understand what you mean,” She nods, “Try telling him that, even if he’s frustrating you. He just wants to help, and hopefully, if you present that, he’ll know how to help better.”

He nods, “I’ll try.”

“That’s all I ask,” She smiles, “Would you like a hug right now? You can always say no.”

He nods, he’s come to like Mrs. Potter’s hugs. They’re comforting rather than constricting. 

She pulls him into a hug, loose but still comforting. Exactly what he needs right now.

He’s  _ so _ thankful for her.


	10. Summer of 1963

Regulus silently curses to himself as he circles the Eb a couple more times, hoping maybe this time he’ll play it right. He plays it again, unfortunately, not right. 

He goes to slow it down and play it again when he hears a distant knocking, likely coming from the front door. It’s muted by both the distance and the slightly shut piano room door, but it oddly piques his interest. He gets up and stands next to the door, listening out to the distant conversation.

“Hi! I’m Andromeda, Sirius and Regulus’ cousin. I just needed to drop something off for them, I’m sorry I offered no warning.”

Well, he certainly wasn’t expecting that. 

“Oh, no worries!” Mrs. Potter replies, “You’re not interrupting anything. Sirius! Regulus! Come here dears!” 

Footsteps down the stairs indicate Sirius heard her, although Regulus stays where he is. He doesn’t really want to see Sirius if he doesn’t have to, they’re still cooling down from their argument. 

“Andromeda!” He exclaims, “What are you doing here?” 

“Dropping things off,” She replies, “This is for you, and I have something else for your brother. Where is he?”

“Where’s Reglus?” Nymphadora parrots. She brought her too? Odd.

“I believe he’s in the piano room,” Mrs. Potter says, “Let me fetch him. You’re welcome to come in if you’d like, as long as you’re in no rush.”

“Are you sure? I really don’t want to intrude, especially with her.”

“No problem at all,” Mrs. Potter assures her, “You’re both welcome.”

“Thank you,” She says, and Regulus takes that as his cue to walk back and sit at the piano. 

Mrs. Potter walks in and he turns to look back as if he doesn’t know already. “Your cousin Andromeda is here.”

He nods and gets up, following her out to see Andromeda with Sirius sitting on the couch. Nymphadora is in her lap and catches sight of him almost immediately. 

“Reglus!” She climbs down and runs over to him, giving him a hug.

He gives her a half hug back, considering she’s much shorter than he is, “Hello.”

She steps back and holds her arms up, although he just stares at her, confused.

“She wants you to pick her up,” Andromeda tells him, “She’s not too heavy, you should be fine.” 

He picks her up and she beams at him, clearly very excited. He’s kind of happy she’s so excited about seeing him again. Although, he’ll never understand it.

“Surprise!” She cheers, “We surprise you!” 

He laughs, nodding, “Mhm.”

Regulus walks over and takes a seat in the armchair across from the couch, setting Nymphadora in his lap instead. She’s just glad to be along for the ride. 

“You live here?” She asks him, not even giving Andromeda a chance to say anything.

“I do,” He answers. 

“Wh-”

“Dora,” Andromeda stops her, “Can I talk to him first?”

“Ok,” She concedes, leaning against him. He instinctively puts an arm around her to keep her from falling off or anything.

“First off, hi Regulus,” She smiles, “Second, this is for you.” She holds up a small box before setting it on the table, “I’ll put it here because you’re a little occupied.”

He nods, looking over to the girl on his lap.

“She’s been asking about you for days,” Andromeda laughs, “I accidentally mentioned I was coming to visit, and she didn’t forget it. And Ted was out today, so I had no choice, but I guess it makes her happy. Sorry, I’m sure you were actually doing something.”

“It’s fine,” He shrugs, “I wasn’t busy.”

Someone who sounds like James comes stomping down the stairs, “Sirius, where did you-”

He stops when he catches sight of all of them in the living room.

“Oh, hi!” He waves at Andromeda.

“Oh, Andy, this is James,” Sirius gestures to James, “James, this is Andromeda,” He gestures to Andromeda.

“Hi,” She waves back.

“Who do you have?” James points at the kid in Regulus’ lap.

“That’s Nymphadora,” Sirius answers for him, to Regulus’ mild annoyance. He could have answered James himself. 

Although, it’s resolved when Nymphadora looks up at him, “Who is that?”

“That’s James,” Regulus answers, glad he has a purpose. 

She turns to James, “Hi James!”

“Hi!” He waves, walking over to grab a seat next to Sirius on the end of the couch. 

“Regulus,” Andromeda says, “Mrs. Potter mentioned a piano room, do you still play?”

He nods, “A lot.”

“That’s so cool, why didn’t you mention that last time?” She jokingly scolds.

“I forgot, I guess.” 

“Piano?” Nymphadora asks, catching up to the conversation apparently.

“Yes,” He nods. 

“I wanna hear! I wanna hear!” She cheers excitedly. Regulus looks up to Andromeda for permission to steal her daughter and bring her into the piano room. 

“Go ahead,” She says, “Where is it?”

Regulus points to the open door down the hall.

“Oh good, just leave the door open,” She smiles, “Go listen to Reg play, Dora.”

“Yay!” She climbs off his lap and grabs his hand. He gets up and leads her off into the room, sitting down at the piano as she pulls herself up to sit next to him. 

In typical child fashion, she immediately starts pressing on the keys recklessly.

“Like this,” He says, playing the first 7 notes of ‘Mary Had a Little Lamb’, something easy enough for her to know.

She mimics him, although very slowly, and completely with her pointer finger. She does it, though.

“Good job!” He smiles, continuing the next part of the song. She repeats it, and they repeat that until they get to the end. Once she gets to the end, she claps for herself. He claps too. 

“Yay!” She cheers, “Play it all play it all!” 

He plays the whole song, and she claps again. He’s secretly overjoyed she’s loving this. 

“What’s that?” She points to the book proper up on the piano.

“Music,” He takes it off, flipping to a Chopin excerpt he knows pretty well. He plays it for her, and she claps excitedly. He loves someone clapping every time he plays something.

“That was cool!” She grabs out for the book, “Let me pick.”

He hands it to her, and she flips through the pages she doesn’t understand. One particularly ink-filled page catches her eye and she hands it back.

“Play that,” She tells him, and he sets the book back up. He takes a moment to read through the piece a little since he’s barely seen this one. And it’s kind of hard. But he plays it anyway. And she claps again.

“Another another,” She reaches out for the book, and he hands it to her so she can pick another piece. She picks one he particularly likes, and he sets it on the piano and plays it for her. She claps again.

“Can I play?” She looks up at him, “Teach me!”

“I did,” He reminds her.

“Oh,” She looks back to the book, “Can you teach me that?”

“I don’t think I can,” He says, “That’s hard.”

She crosses her arms and pouts, orange beginning to spread from the roots of her hair. She looks visibly very upset he can’t teach her this, and he has no idea what to do about it.

He gets up and holds out his hand, “Come on.”

She shakes her head and holds her arms up, and he sighs and picks her up. She buries her head in his shoulder and he walks back out into the living room, immediately catching Andromeda’s eye.

“Oh no, what happened?” She holds her arms out to take Nymphadora back. Regulus hands her back, despite her protest, and walks over to take his seat back on the armchair.

“Dora-”

“Not crying,” She shakes her head, “I’m ok.”

“You’re ok?” Andromeda asks, half laughing. 

“Yeah,” She nods adamantly despite clearly still crying, “We can stay.”

“Oh ok, that’s why,” Andromeda laughs, “If you say so, Dora.” 

Nymphadora gets down and walks over to Sirius and James, pushing Sirius over so she can sit between the two of them. 

“Hi!” James waves.

“Hi… uh,” Nymphadora pauses, wiping her face, “What’s your name?”

“James,” He reminds her, a smile painted across his face. 

“James!” She repeats, her attention caught by Mrs. Potter walking over to the group of them. “Hi!” 

“Hello dear!” Mrs. Potter happily greets, “What’s your name?”

“Dora!”

“Your name is Nymphadora, honey,” Andromeda corrects her.

“Oh, yeah,” She giggles, “Nymphadora.”

“That’s a very pretty name!” She smiles before looking up to Andromeda, “Would you like tea or anything?”

“No thank you, it’s fine,” She says, holding up a hand to shield her mouth from Nymphadora’s view, “We’re leaving soon anyway.”

Mrs. Potter nods in the unspoken understanding that she can’t mention that out loud, “Just let me know if you need anything.”

Andromeda nods, “Thank you.” She looks over to Regulus, “Do you have a watch?”

He nods, holding up the arm with his watch on it.

“What time is it?”

“3:10.”

“Oh shoot, I was supposed to leave 5 minutes ago,” Andromeda stands up and looks down to Nymphadora, who is happily talking to Sirius and James, before looking to Regulus, “This isn’t going to go well.”

“Good luck,” He leans back, hoping maybe this time he won’t be the one she clings to.

“Dora,” Andromeda calls her attention up, “We have to go sweetheart.”

“No!” She exclaims, “I’m ok, we can stay.”

“No, we have to go anyway,” She says, “Dad is waiting for us.”

“No, he can wait!” She shakes her head, “Staying!”

Andromeda sighs, “Come on, we’re going to go back home.”

And she’s crying again.

“Come here, Dora-”

“No!” She grabs onto Sirius, “Staying!”

Andromeda looks up to Mrs. Potter off in the kitchen, who is looking on amused. “I’m so sorry,” Andromeda apologizes.

“Oh, it’s no big deal,” She assures her, “Everything ends badly.”

“You can say that again,” Andromeda laughs, walking over and attempting to pick up Nymphadora, although her vice-like grip on Sirius makes that a little challenging. Andromeda turns to Regulus, “Can you do me a favor? Call her over.”

“Come here Nymphadora,” Regulus waves her over. She gets up and runs over to him, climbing up and wrapping her arms around his neck. 

“I don’t want to go,” She tells him, sobbing.

“You can come back soon,” He says, “We’ll play piano again.”

“We will?” She sits back to look at him, her eyes full of tears. 

“Mhm,” He nods, glancing up to Andromeda, who is looking on encouragingly.

“Can you carry me?” She asks, looking up at her mother, “Mum is mean.”

Andromeda laughs, “He can carry you to the door, honey.”

“Ok,” She sighs, grabbing onto Regulus so he can stand up with her. They walk off towards the door, Sirius walking behind them to say goodbye to Andromeda. He gives her a hug before he and James retreat back upstairs, and Andromeda tries to takes Nymphadora from Regulus. She just buries her head further into him. 

“No,” She slurs, clearly tired, “I wanna stay.”

Andromeda sighs, “Come on, Dora. We’re going to go home and see dad, you miss him.”

“Don’t wanna,” She shakes her head.

“You’re tired,” She grabs her from Regulus, “Rough day, apparently.”

“Mmm,” Nymphadora drones in weak protest.

“Well anyway,” Andromeda looks back to Regulus, “I’m guessing you and your brother aren’t getting along?”

“Thanks, Andromeda,” Regulus sarcastically replies, “We got in an argument this morning.”

“Ah, so it’s sibling cool off time,” She nods, “I won’t ask what because it’s probably stupid. And you both probably think it was each other's faults.”

“It was Sirius’ fault.”

“See?” She laughs, “I would’ve told you that about every fight Cissy and I had. Only Cissy though, because Bella’s were actually her fault, anyone would have agreed on that.” 

“That sounds right,” Regulus shrugs.

“Anyway, it was great to see you,” Andromeda give him a side hug with the arm not holding Nymphadora, who looks like she’s falling asleep, “Don’t forget the package on the table, it has food in it so don’t leave it unopened.”

“I won’t,” Regulus assures her, “Thank you.”

Andromeda opens the door, “I’ll see you soon, Reg.”

“Bye, Andromeda,” He waves as they walk out the door, Andromeda shutting it behind her.

“You have very nice cousins, Regulus,” Mrs. Potter says, “The cousin that came and took you the other day was also very nice.”

“Narcissa and Andromeda are nice,” He nods, going into the living room and grabbing the box off the table. He heads back upstairs and into his room, shutting the door quietly behind him. He takes a seat on the bed and opens the package, inside of it a small bag of 5 cookies, seemingly 5 different types.

He pulls out a note.

_ I baked way too much yesterday, thought I’d give you and Sirius a sample. I also put something else in here, surprise! _

_ Andromeda (and Nymphadora, she helped) _

Regulus looks back in the box, lifting up the paper to find the other thing that’s in here. It’s upside down, the back of it reading ‘Summer of 1963’. He flips it over, seeing a picture of him and his cousins. He’s barely 2, sitting on Andromeda’s shoulders out in his aunt and uncle’s garden. Sirius is hanging upside down from Bella’s neck, smiling like an idiot. Narcissa is reaching up to Regulus, handing him what looks like a flower. He doesn’t remember any of this, naturally because he was 2. But it’s nice to see them all happy. 

The door to his room flies open, and he feels his soul leave his body before realizing it’s just James. 

“Oh shit, I’m sorry!” He jumps to apologize, “I just wanted to come say hi.”

Regulus stares at him a moment, “Hi?”

“Hi!” James walks over and sits on the bed, “How’s it going with you?”

“Alright,” He hesitates, confused for what James’ motive is, “And you?”

“I’m good!” James smiles, “You’ve been alone all day, I feel bad!” 

Regulus shrugs, “I don’t mind it.”

“I don’t get that, I just need people,” James comments.

“I can tell,” Regulus deadpans, hoping James picks up on the fact that that’s what sibling banter sounds like. Good news, he does.

“Is it obvious?” He jokes, looking down at the photo in Regulus’ hand, “What’s that?” 

“A picture,” He says, and James takes it from him to look at it.

“Oh my god, is that you?” He smiles, pointing at baby Regulus in the picture.

Regulus nods. 

“You’re so cute, awww,” James coos, “And I’m guessing that’s Sirius, who is he with?”

“Bella.”

“Ah,” James nods, “And that’s Andromeda, and that’s Narcissa, right?”

Regulus nods again.

“See, I know things!” James hands the photo back, “Did Andromeda give you that?”

“Mhm,” Regulus affirms, “She’s the master of pictures, always has been.”

“Oh my God, her daughter is so cute!” James points out, “And she’s a metamorphmagus, right?”

Regulus nods.

“She really loved you,” James laughs, “You were good with her too, I have a feeling you’ll attract all my younger cousins.” 

“Younger cousins?”

“Oh, you have no idea do you?” James asks, the question apparently rhetorical, “Sirius has met a couple of them, but I have a ton of cousins. I’m the oldest of the kids since my older cousins are like 25 to 30, some with their own kids. And then most of them are under 10, and then I think one of my cousins just had a baby. You also get to help me babysit!” 

“Wonderful,” Regulus deadpans, “I don’t like kids, they’re terrifying.”

“No, you’ll love them!” James gets up, “I’m gonna go annoy some more people, it was fun seeing you Regulus!” 

“Bye James,” Regulus gives him a small wave, James walking out and shutting the door behind him. Regulus looks back to the picture, picking it up to look at it some more. He  _ so  _ rarely sees happy baby pictures.

He was, admittedly, kind of a cute baby.


	11. Too Far

A knock on the door stirs Regulus awake, “Breakfast, Regulus.”

Regulus sits up and squints out at the rest of the room overly bright, his head pounding. It was another restless night, although not as bad as the night before. He’s sure he looks horrible anyway.

He goes to stand up, only to have to sit back down on the bed as his entire vision blurs. He tries to figure out why he feels so bad, why he feels so bad, only to realize maybe it’s the  _ two meals _ he skipped yesterday. Not even on purpose, he just wasn’t hungry.

He makes his way down the stairs, resenting the combined volume of his brother and James. He grabs his seat at the table, and apparently, he and Sirius aren’t on speaking terms yet, because even though he looks at him he doesn’t say anything. James, however, is too deep in some story to realize he even sat down. 

Mrs. Potter sets down his plate and hers, “Good morning Regulus.”

“Good morning,” He replies, a little more rugged sounding than he intended. 

“Oh, did you eat anything after breakfast yesterday dear?” She asks, setting a hand on his back and leaning forward to look at him. 

He shakes his head. 

“My goodness, how are you not hungry?” She walks back into the kitchen, “That's not good for you, Regulus.”

“I know,” He mutters as she sets plates of food on the table. Well, now he feels bad about it. 

Mr. Potter comes out from down the hallway, only then James breaks away from his story. 

“Hi dad!” He waves and Mr. Potter smiles at him as he grabs a seat. James looks over to Regulus, “Woah, when did you get here?” 

Regulus just shrugs. 

“Well good morning anyway! Sorry, I totally didn’t see you,” James laughs. 

Mrs. Potter takes a seat and they all start to fill their plates, Regulus putting a relatively small portion of everything. He doesn’t have the appetite for much more. 

James dominates the conversation, as he always does. Talking about this or that, at an unfortunately high volume. Despite Regulus knowing his headache is at least partially from not eating, it’s making him not  _ want _ to eat. A little bit of a challenging paradox. 

Mrs. Potter looks over and gestures to the food still on the table, “Eat some more, dear.”

“I’m not hungry,” He shrugs. 

She sighs, rubbing his shoulder, “We’ll talk later.” Her voice is barely above a whisper, so only he hears it. He nods and takes another sip of juice from his cup.

James looks to him, “Right, Reg?”

“Sure,” Regulus answers, despite having no idea what is going on.

“That’s why Regulus is my favorite,” James laughs, “He just agrees with me.”

“It’s easier,” Regulus replies.

“Ok I’ll take that,” James looks over to Sirius, “So, what’re you doing today?”

“Why would I be doing anything today?” Sirius raises an eyebrow at him. 

“I don’t know, I’m just asking,” James shrugs, looking to Regulus, “Are  _ you _ doing anything?”

“No,” Regulus shakes his head.

“Well that’s sad,” James looks over to his dad, “Are you doing anything?”

“I have to take a trip to the ministry, so nothing you’re joining me on,” Mr. Potter says to him, getting up, “Speaking of, I should be off, does anyone want me to take their plates?”

James hands his plate to his father, Sirius and Regulus both following. James gets up from the table, marking the end of breakfast. Everyone else gets up as well, and Regulus retreats back upstairs into his room.

It’s way too bright, so he decides to just light one candle and block every other source of light. He lays back, just staring up at the ceiling for a minute until the light from the hallway comes flooding into the room. He looks over to see Mrs. Potter standing in the doorway.

“Are you feeling alright dear?” She pushes the door slightly shut behind her and heads over to his bed, putting a hand on his forehead, “You’re not hot at all.”

“Just a headache,” He mumbles, moving to sit up.

“Likely from not eating,” She sighs, “I’ll get you something to help ease that, hopefully that’ll help a little bit. Make sure you eat some more, too.”

He nods and she slips back out of the room, leaving the door only open a crack. She comes back a minute later with a small cup, and what he thinks is medicine inside. 

“Drink this,” She hands it to him, “It’s a little bitter.”

He drinks it in one shot, and it’s more than just a little bitter. His face sours at the taste as he hands it back. 

“I know it’s not the best, but it’s better than a general painkiller,” She says, “Hopefully that’ll help. Come down and grab something to eat once you feel up to it, alright?”

He nods, “Thank you.”

“Of course,” She smiles, heading back towards the door, “Oh, and just yell if the boys are bothering you too much.”

“I will,” He replies, “Thank you.”

She heads back out of the room, shutting the door quietly behind her. 

He lays back again, going back to staring up at the dimly candlelit ceiling. He contemplates falling back asleep, although he doesn’t know if he can. 

But for now, the ceiling is good enough. 

***

James folds the corner of the book he’s attempting to read, throwing it down on the bed and groaning. He needs to  _ do something _ , but Sirius disappeared somewhere, and Regulus has been out of his room almost all day. Not to mention he didn’t look like he wanted James’ company, so maybe he’s not one to annoy. 

He gets out of bed and heads downstairs, seeing his mother sitting on the couch reading something, the sound of faint piano music coming from down the hall. His mother looks up and smiles.

“Hi, James.”

“Where is Sirius?” He asks. 

“Down the hall,” She points to the open piano room door, “And hello to you too.”

“Sorry, hi!” He waves, “Ok bye!”

He heads into the room, seeing Sirius painting in one corner and Regulus playing in the other. They do not look like they’ve acknowledged each other in the slightest. Sirius turns around when he walks in, Regulus glances back, but only for a moment.

“Hey James,” Sirius greets, going back to what he’s doing. 

“Hi Sirius,” James walks up behind him, “What’re you doing?”

“Take a guess,” He laughs, glancing up out the window.

James looks from the canvas in front of him out the window and back, realizing that’s almost a perfect copy of what he’s looking at.

“That’s- that’s that,” He points between the two of them, “That’s so cool!” 

“Thank you,” Sirius smiles, “You act like you’ve never seen me paint before. We’ve known each other for almost 6 years, James.”

“Ok look,” James laughs, “I can still be impressed, it’s still a very cool talent.”

“Thank you,” Sirius says again, “What’re you doing?”

“Nothing, that’s why I’m in here,” James tells him.

“Well grab something to do and come sit,” Sirius points to the cushions on the ground, “Just be quiet.”

“Be quiet?” James groans, “Ugh.”

“Yes quiet,” Sirius says, “We’re busy.”

“Fine fine,” James walks out of the room and back upstairs, grabbing a deck of cards off of his nightstand before heading back downstairs. He grabs a seat on the pile of cushions up against the bookshelf right behind Sirius. 

He plays a couple of various games, although he can only go around 5 minutes without saying something.

“Sirius-”

“James,” Sirius looks back, “Shh.”

“It’s so quiet,” James pouts.

“Reg is literally playing piano,” Sirius points back to Regulus before turning back to what he’s doing. 

“And it’s wonderful music, but I want to  _ talk _ ,” James complains, “I like talking, and there are people here to talk to.”

“That’s not how this works,” Sirius laughs, “Welcome to siblings, James.”

“This is not what I signed up for.”

“You didn’t sign up for anything.”

“Ok, look.”

“What am I looking at?”

Regulus stops playing and shoots Sirius an annoyed look, presumably telling him to shut up, because he passes the message along.

“Ok good conversation now shh,” Sirius flicks water at him. 

“Hey!”

“Shh,” Sirius shushes him again.

“Ok ok,” James sighs, going back to the game he’s playing on the floor. Regulus goes back to what he was playing, and he can hear Sirius humming along. 

He’s already tired of this. He’s been itching to do something all day, and now he’s sitting  _ silently _ ? Disgusting.

He gets antsy again and speaks up, “How do you do this?”

“Do what?” Sirius asks without turning around. 

“Sit in silence,” He says.

“Do you know how much silence we sat in as children?” Sirius laughs, looking over to Regulus, “I think we should subject him to hallway torture.”

“He’d be there for an hour,” Regulus says, not even looking over. 

“What are you two talking about?” He looks between both of them, “Why am I there for an hour?”

“One of my  _ favorite _ punishments as a kid,” Sirius turns around, “You stand in the hallway, facing normally a cousin or something, and you stand there, up straight and silently, without moving for 5 minutes. You get a minute added for every movement, 2 for every sound. It’s a group activity normally.”

“It wasn’t punishment,” Regulus corrects him.

“Ok, whatever, it felt like it.” He brushes the comment off, “We used to do it before like big family parties, because you would stand there, silently, for like 2 hours before we got banished upstairs.”

“I feel like the standing thing isn’t that hard-”

“James,” Sirius cuts him off, “You can’t sit silently in a room with things to do.”

“Ok so maybe I can’t,” James laughs, “But if I put my mind to it, I could.”

“You can’t smile,” Regulus adds.

“Wait why can’t I smile?” James says, “That was not in the instructions.”

“It’s like, a specific dead look you have to have,” Sirius explains, “I’m horrible at it, so was Bella. We used to just laugh at one another, and all of us would stand there for an hour,” 

“Thanks,” Regulus deadpans. 

“You’re welcome,” Sirius playfully gushes, “But yeah James, you wouldn’t do well. And you wouldn’t even get the added violence when you did something wrong. It just wouldn’t be the same without-”

“Sirius,” Regulus firmly stops him, “Stop talking about it.”

“Sorry,” Sirius apologizes, completely halting the conversation. And now it’s quiet again, save for the piano. Sirius apparently pushed it too far, which sucks, because James was enjoying the conversation.

James gives up on doing nothing, sighing and getting up from the ground. He heads out into the living room, taking a seat next to his mother.

“Hi Mum!”

“Hello James,” She smiles, “How are you dear?”

“I’m bored,” He groans.

“Why aren’t you in with Sirius and Regulus?” She asks, “There are other people here, you don’t have to come to ask me for things to do.”

“I’m not allowed to talk,” He crosses his arms, “Sirius is painting and Reg is playing, but they didn’t really acknowledge each other.”

“They’re just spending time together,” She tells him.

“Silently?”

She nods, “It’s times like this I regret you growing up as an only child.”

“Where’s dad?” 

“He left this morning, remember?” She reminds him.

“Yeah yeah yeah,” He nods, “I remember. I just want something to  _ do _ .”

“I have some chores if you’re truly desperate,” She jokingly proposes.

“Nope, actually, I’m not bored anymore,” He gets up, but immediately realizes he has nowhere to go. 

Someone walking out of the room he was just in catches his eye, and he looks over to see Regulus walking out, his eyes down and his arms folded. Sirius leans out of the doorway.

“Reg,” Sirius says, although Regulus doesn’t acknowledge him. Sirius goes to follow him but James’ mother stops him. 

“Leave him be, Sirius,” She says, “And careful, please don’t get paint everywhere.”

“Oh, sorry,” He quickly walks back into the piano room. James goes in after him, interested in what the hell just happened.

“What was that?” James asks, grabbing a seat on the now vacant piano bench. 

“I fucked up a little, whoops,” He says, picking back up the brush from the cup next to him.

“How?”

“You know how I was talking about the hallway torture?” Sirius glances over and James nods, “Yeah, well I pushed it a little too far, I sometimes forget Reg doesn’t just talk about that shit like I do with you. Rolled off my tongue, did not sound as pleasant to him.”

“Oh, that?” James says, “I mean, I guess that makes sense, right? We joke about that more than we should. Considering it was literally your life.”

“We have my permission to,” Sirius points out, “Maybe not around Reg though, apparently.”

“You can’t blame him.”

“I don’t, he’s just- a little frustrating,” Sirius sighs, “Let’s talk about something other than my obnoxious brother.”

“Oh oh I got this,” James excitedly replies, “So I’ve started reading this book- I know, James reading, wow- but…” 


	12. Babysitters

Regulus wakes up from another night of sporadic nightmares, all about something he hasn’t been in for almost two weeks. He absolutely does not understand  _ why _ , but he’s stopped trying to. It’s not worth it. He feels better than he did yesterday though, so that’s good. 

The door creeks open and he expects Mrs. Potter to peek in, so he’s surprised when he sees James.

“Good morning Regulus!” He greets far too excitedly.

“Good morning,” Regulus replies, trying to figure out how James is so awake.

“Two things,” He starts, “One, come get breakfast, two, you and Sirius got a letter from Andromeda.”

Regulus gets up, “Me and Sirius?”

“It’s for the both of you, and me, kind of,” James explains, and Regulus just shakes his head because his explanation makes no sense. 

They head downstairs, where Sirius is already at the table. He’s reading something on the table, presumably this letter James mentioned. Regulus takes a seat and leans forward, trying to read what it says. He doesn’t have to, because Sirius turns it around and slides it to him.

“You’re going to love this, Reg.”

Regulus raises an eyebrow and picks up the letter.

_ Sirius and Regulus, _

_ I know I just saw you the other day, but I have a huge favor to ask you. _

_ Ted and I have been trying to get out of the house without our darling daughter for weeks, but we just haven’t had anyone to watch her. Yes, this is going exactly in the direction you think it is. I wanted to know if you two are comfortable coming over and watching Nymphadora for a couple of hours today (The 30th). You’re welcome to bring James (that’s his name, right?), he seemed like he wasn’t destructive or anything.  _

_ Just let me know how you’re both feeling about it, I can take a no it’s ok.  _

_ Andromeda (And Ted). _

“So?” Sirius says, taking the letter and folding it as Regulus pushes it back. 

Regulus shrugs, “I don’t have a problem.”

“Great, cool,” Sirius looks up, “Mrs. Potter?” 

“Yes, dear?” She turns around.

“Andromeda asked if Reg, James, and I could babysit Nymphadora for a couple of hours,” Sirius tells her, “Is that alright?”

“That sounds fine,” She says, setting a plate on the table, “When?”

“She didn’t say, I can floo her a response and ask her,” Sirius replies, “I think that’s what she was planning on.”

“Just find out when,” She smiles, “I trust her, I don’t mind.”

“Thank you!” Sirius excitedly replies before looking to Regulus, “Isn’t this fun?” 

“Thrilling,” He deadpans. 

“This is such an exciting plan,” James chimes in, “Doing things!” 

“Yes, doing things James,” Sirius laughs. 

Mr. Potter walks in from down the hallway and grabs his seat, just as Mrs. Potter takes hers.

“Fleamont, the kids are going to babysit Sirius and Regulus’ cousin today,” Mrs. Potter says, “You don’t have a choice, I’m just telling you.”

“I figured,” He laughs, “I don’t care anyway.”

“Good.”

“I’m so excited, I get to leave the  _ house _ ,” James sighs with relief, “And that kid was very cute.”

“Good luck to Reg, because she loves him,” Sirius laughs.

Regulus just shrugs. He won’t admit that he’s growing to like seeing her. 

Kids are still annoying, though.

***

Sirius knocks on the door, Regulus and James standing behind him. James, somehow, is not at all nervous about walking into someone’s house who he doesn’t know and literally taking care of her child. 

The door opens and a very dressed up Andromeda stands on the other side, “Oh yes, you guys are my saviors.”

She gives Sirius a hug, although it’s more so that he’s giving her one. She gestures for Regulus to walk up and gives him one as well before looking at James.

“I feel bad for not acknowledging you, would you like a hug?” She asks, laughing.

“I’ll take a hug,” He smiles, and she gives him a hug as well. She waves for them to follow her inside and heads upstairs, James shutting the door behind him. They all gather at the top of the stairs, watching Ted emerge from one of the doors down the hall. 

“Hello, boys,” He smiles, “You guys are really helping us out, thank you so much.”

“Of course,” Sirius answers, “It’s no problem.”

“Did you tell Dora we’re leaving?” Andromeda asks, and Ted turns right back around and opens what is probably Nymphadora’s door down the hall. 

“Mum and I are leaving, Dora,” He says, “Do you remember who is going to stay with you?”

They can hear her gasp and watch her run out of the room, smiling while looking at the three of them. She runs up and stands in front of Andromeda, looking up at her.

“How long?” She asks. 

“Just a couple of hours,” Andromeda picks her up and gives her a kiss, “Be good, ok?”

Nymphadora nods, “I will!” 

“Ted,” Andromeda looks up, “Can you just show the boys around a little? Just so they know where everything is.”

“Sure, come on,” Ted has them follow him around the house, pointing out every room and a couple of kitchen cabinets with stuff they can have. Their house is just the top floor, the stairs going down going into the basement that they’re told not to go into. Not like they would have any reason to, but Sirius and James are nosey.

They come back upstairs and Andromeda hands Nymphadora off to Ted to say goodbye.

“Mum told you to be good right?” Ted asks her, and she adamantly nods, “And you said yes?” She nods again and he gives her a kiss on the head, “Good, I love you, Dora.”

“Love you too,” She smiles back, and he sets her down. 

Andromeda looks to the group of them, “Ms. Smith, right next door, normally comes over to watch her. If you need anything, just knock, she’s very nice.”

“I think we’ll be fine,” Sirius says, “At least James knows what he’s doing.”

“I babysit a lot of cousins,” James laughs, “I know what’s up.”

“I’m glad you know what’s up,” She laughs before she and Ted make their way down the stairs, “Just make sure there are 4 of you when we come back!” 

“We will!” Sirius answers, “Bye Andy! Bye Ted!”

“Bye boys,” She waves before the two walk out the door. Nymphadora immediately turns to the three of them.

“Hi!” She waves.

“Hi!” James waves back with just as much enthusiasm. He’s just a big child.

She walks up to Regulus, who is standing behind the two others, and holds her arms up. He begrudgingly picks her up, not really understanding why she needs to be off the ground, they’re not going anywhere.

She leans over and whispers something in his ear, “What’s his name?”

“James,” Regulus whispers back, and she looks back to James.

“Hi James!” She repeats.

He laughs, “Hi Dora!”

“What about me?” Sirius asks, “Do I get a hello?”

“Hi Sirius!” She says, “You’re watching me.”

“We are watching you,” He nods, “Let’s go sit, I’m done standing.”

They walk over and grab a seat on Andromeda’s couch, Regulus setting Nymphadora on his lap. She looks excitedly between James and Sirius, who are already laying on one another, and Regulus. 

“What first?” She asks. 

“What do you want to do first?” James asks, wrapping his arms around Sirius, who is laying on top of him. 

“Come play come play,” She gets up and grabs onto Regulus’ hand, pulling him to sit on the ground. She walks back over and drags Sirius next, then James. She then takes a seat and grabs a bucket of animal toys, pouring them all out on the ground. 

She beams up at them all before pointing, “Pick one!” 

***

The four of them play with those godforsaken animal toys two hours before Nymphadora looks like she’s going to fall asleep sitting up, and granted, Regulus is just as tired. He cannot understand how Andromeda does this all the time. Sirius goes to get up, but Nymphadora grabs onto him.

“More,” Nymphadora yawns, “More more.”

“You’re tired, Dora,” James says, “Why don’t you lay down for a little?”

“Mm,” She shakes her head, “‘M not tired.”

Sirius gets up and goes to pick her up, but she pushes him away, “No!”

“Oh no,” Sirius holds his hands up and walks off, “Good luck. I’m getting something from the kitchen.”

“Get me something!” James yells before looking back to a  _ very _ upset Nymphadora. 

“Where is Sirius going?” She crosses her arms and pouts.

“He’s getting something to eat,” James replies, “Do you-”

“No!” She yells, making Regulus aware of the headache from yesterday that comes creeping back in, “No no!” 

“We’re done-”

“No!” She yells again, her hair shifting a quite violent color of orange. The yelling is really not doing Regulus any good.

“Regulus,” Sirius says, peeking out of the kitchen archway, “You want something?” 

Regulus shakes his head before looking back to Nymphadora, who is giving James a death glare. 

“Dora, we can do something else-”

“This!” She protests, frustrated tears welling up in her eyes, “This!”

“This what?” He asks.

“This,” She whines, seemingly not being able to grasp actual language. Regulus decides he’s done listening to this worthless bargaining and tries to help.

“Come here Dora,” He quietly says, and surprisingly she listens. She wraps her arms around his neck, crying, and he holds her so he can stand up. After the short adjustment to the change in elevation, Regulus heads over to the couch, grabbing a seat. Nymphadora doesn’t let go of him She mumbles something, although Regulus doesn’t hear a word of it.

“What?” He asks. 

“I wanna play,” She tiredly slurs.

James walks towards the kitchen, mouthing ‘Good luck’ at Regulus and smiling before disappearing around the corner. 

“We’ll play later.”

“When?” She questions, moving to lay against him instead of hanging around his neck, which is much appreciated.

“Later,” He answers, “But we will.”

“Mhm,” She whispers listlessly, clearly dozing off against him. 

He doesn’t say anything, hoping she’ll sleep off the frustration of not being able to play  _ more _ with the stupid farm animals. Regulus tries to keep himself awake, regretting the fact that he’s quite comfortable, despite the weight leaning against him. He hears the radio go on in the next room over, Sirius and James singing along to whatever just came on.

It’s perfect background noise, not too loud, but not uneasily quiet. But he’s not going to fall asleep. Nope, not happening. He’s not home, he’s got a 3-year-old on his lap, and he’s  _ not _ tired. 

But maybe he can just close his eyes for a moment. 

***

James hears the front door creak open, and Sirius is immediately rushing out of the kitchen to shush Ted and Andromeda before they even walk in the house. James walks up behind him, looking at the two very confused faces.

“Is she asleep?” Andromeda asks, and Sirius just gestures for them to come upstairs. Andromeda listens, walking to look in the living room at a sleeping Nymphadora wrapped in the arms of an also sleeping Regulus. 

“Oh my god,” She laughs quietly, “That is adorable. How long have the two of them been out?”

Sirius shrugs, “10 minutes maybe? I walked in like 5 minutes ago because I thought they were dead it was so quiet.”

“What is going on up here?” Ted asks, walking in and coming to the same realization Andromeda did, “I’m guessing that means this went well?” 

“She was upset we stopped playing with the toys she kept handing us.”

“The animals?” Andromeda asks, and Sirius and James both nod “Oh yeah, those are her favorite. She’ll play with them until she passes out, which I guess you guys figured out.”

“Thank God she likes Reg,” Sirius comments, “She would not let James or I get anywhere near her when we told her we were done.”

“She really loves him, it’s weird,” Andromeda says, “This is only the third time she’s been around you two, but she’ll ask about seeing Reg all the time.” 

“She blamed me the other day for the fact that he didn’t live here,” Ted laughs, “I have nothing to do with that.”

“Well apparently you did,” Andromeda jokes before looking to Sirius, “I’m surprised Reg fell asleep.”

“He’d never admit it, but he hasn’t been sleeping, so it makes sense he’s tired,” Sirius explains, “I’m sure he didn’t mean to fall asleep, but it’s good for him.”

“I always thought you’d be the one who would be good with Dora,” Andromeda says, making her way into the kitchen. James and Sirius follow her in, and Ted heads off down the hallway.

“Reg will still pretend that he doesn’t like her,” Sirius comments, leaning against the counter, “He’s an idiot like that.”

“I can’t wait until he gets to meet my family,” James laughs, “He’s gonna be great with them, better than you.”

“Oh shut up,” Sirius elbows him.

“The second she got upset you left,” James points out.

“Oh I’m so happy I had you come with other people,” Andromeda laughs, “Dora is a very emotional kid.”

“She’s cried every time we’ve seen her,” Sirius replies, “That’s way too much.”

“It’s a part of being a metamorphmagus,” Andromeda sighs, “They told us when we found out she was one that it isn’t the best for emotional regulation. It’ll get better as she gets older, but she gets really  _ really _ easily frustrated, to the point where she can’t form sentences and just repeats the same word over and over.”

“You’re a saint, Andy, I’m telling you,” Sirius laughs, “You deal with that all the time?” 

“Mhm, for the most part,” She nods, “There are things we do to, you know, calm her down, but we’re not the best at it even after 3 years. When you guys left after coming over here we had to wait an hour to eat dinner because she was all bent out of shape.”

“You just never mentioned any of this?” Sirius questions, “We were watching her and you decided this wasn’t important?”

“You were only here for a couple of hours, and it’s not anything you can do anything about,” Andromeda shrugs, “And apparently you didn’t need to know it anyway, because Regulus managed just fine for the three of you.”

“Speaking of, are we going to wake him up?” James asks, “And how hasn’t he woken up already?”

“Well, Reg is a heavier sleeper than I am, although that’s not saying much,” Sirius laughs, “But I mean we have to eventually.” 

“You’re welcome to hang around, it just depends on when you need to be back,” Andromeda offers.

“Mum just said be back before 9, and it’s only 8:15,” James says, looking over at Sirius, “I’m in no rush.”

“Neither am I,” Sirius looks to Andromeda, “So how was your afternoon out?”

***

“Hey Reg,” Someone calls, and he feels them lightly shake him awake, “We’re going home.”

He spends a moment and gets a sense of where he is and who is talking to him, noting both Nymphadora laying against him and Sirius with a hand on his shoulder. How long was he asleep? 

“Good morning,” Sirius sarcastically greets, and Regulus rolls his eyes. Sirius laughs and stands up, holding out a hand to help Regulus stand, although he can’t quite take it. Instead, Regulus picks up Nymphadora as he stands, who is out cold on top of him. He turns around and sees Andromeda and Ted, Ted inviting Regulus to hand her off. 

He walks over and trades the girl off to her father, “Thank you Regulus, I can’t believe you got her sleeping. You’re a miracle worker, you have no idea.”

“Other than that she’ll be up at 6am,” Andromeda adds.

“She’ll be up at 6am anyway,” Ted says, “The earlier she’s down the better off we are, Dromeda.”

“Fair point,” Andromeda waves Regulus over and gives him a hug, “Thank you so much for your help Reg.”

“Sorry for falling asleep,” He apologies, trying to rub tiredness out of his eyes.

“Don’t apologize, it’s not an issue, if it was we would have woken you up earlier,” Andromeda brushes it off, “Now don’t be late, I feel like Mrs. Potter will have my head.”

“She probably will have mine,” James laughs.

“Let me apparate you three home,” Andromeda offers, “Come on, outside.”

They listen, offering their hushed goodbyes to Ted. Andromeda shuts the door behind them once they’re all standing on her front steps, and she grabs onto all three of them.

“You know the deal, close your eyes.”

They close their eyes, and before he knows it, Regulus is standing outside of the Potter’s house, a little more dazed than before. Andromeda is good, but not as good as Narcissa was. Although he’s not sure anyone can beat that, her apparition was pretty good. 

Andromeda knocks on the door, and Mrs. Potter opens it almost immediately, “Hello!”

“Hi Mrs. Potter,” Andromeda steps to the side, “I have your boys, all in one piece.” 

“Oh, wonderful,” Mrs. Potter laughs, “I trust they were all well behaved?” 

“Very,” Andromeda smiles, “They were definitely a powerful babysitting team, and I came back to the same number of kids I left.”

“Good, that’s what I want to hear,” Mrs. Potter steps back and gestures for the three of them to come in, “Thank you for dropping them off, dear.”

“Thank you for letting me take them,” Andromeda replies, looking to the group of them standing behind her, “Bye boys! Thanks again!” 

“Bye Andy!” Sirius waves for the three of them, and Andromeda bids her final goodbyes before Mrs. Potter shuts the door. 

“Did you have fun boys?” Mrs. Potter asks, heading back off into the living room.

“Mhm!” James replies, “Reg fell asleep.”

“Thanks, James,” Regulus deadpans before yawning. 

“I can tell, dear,” Mrs. Potter smiles at him, “You should go up to bed, you still look half asleep.”

Regulus nods and heads towards the stairs.

“Goodnight, Regulus,” Mrs. Potter waves.

Regulus looks back at her, “Goodnight.”


	13. I Like Him

Regulus flips through a book he’s not really reading, keeping one eye on Sirius and James playing Wizard’s Chess on the coffee table. Sirius is sitting on the couch next to him, and James, in natural James fashion, is sitting on the ground. They’re somehow completely silent, which makes  _ no  _ sense. Regulus knows there’s something up, but he can’t tell what it is. 

The fire lights up a little brighter and Sirius’ head shoots over, disappointed when nothing comes of it. 

“He’s fine, Sirius,” James assures him, “Moony does this a lot, I think he’s ok.”

Moony, that’s Remus, Regulus knows that much. Although, he has no idea why they’re so worried and what he’s apparently doing so often. He keeps his eyes on his book, hoping they’ll forget he’s here. 

“Doesn’t mean I’m not worried,” Sirius replies nervously.

“What would you do if you weren’t here?” James asks, “Like, if you couldn’t hear from him immediately.”

“Wait for  _ you  _ to tell me,” Sirius answers, “Worry internally.”

“Ok, fair point,” James concedes, “But he’ll let us know when he can, it’s not worth worrying about it.”

“I know it’s not worth it, James, doesn’t mean I’m  _ not _ worried,” Sirius sighs, “I don’t know, just- bad feeling about this one.”

“More often than not he’s just a little beat up afterward-”

“Because we’re there, Prongs,” Sirius interrupts him, “Hasn’t he ever told you about fulls at home?”

“Ok, but- still, he’s fine,” James brushes him off, “Make your move.”

Full? Regulus tries to figure out what on  _ Earth _ that means because it certainly represents whatever the thing they’re worried about here is. Full, full-

Full  _ moon _ ? Is he a  _ werewolf _ ?

The fire flares again, this time a letter flying out of it. Sirius immediately gets up and heads over picking it up off the ground and opening it. His face doesn’t get any less nervous, meaning nothing good happened.

“You’re not making a very calm face,” James comments, getting up and looking over his shoulder. He must’ve reached the part of concern because James mutters, “Oh great. Well, at least he’s in one piece.”

“Let me grab something to write back with, hold on,” Sirius hands James the letter and goes upstairs, James taking his seat back where he was. Regulus looks over at him, to which James just smiles and waves as if nothing is happening. Regulus gives him a small wave back.

“How are you doing Reg?” James asks.

“Good, I guess,” Regulus hesitantly answers, “How are you?”

“I’m good!” He replies, “Sirius isn’t, but I am.”

Regulus nods, “Self-preservation.”

“Exactly!” James laughs, “Someone gets it.”

Sirius comes back down the stairs and kneels next to the coffee table, scribbling a response to the letter he just got. Once he finishes, he slides it over to James, who writes a little more at the bottom. Regulus can’t read it, although from the looks of it no one could because the handwriting is absolutely a mess. 

James folds it up and grabs his wand, uttering an incantation at the fire before throwing the letter in, the fire flaring up as it takes it to wherever they’re sending it. Sirius sits back on the couch and leans back, sighing. 

“Isn’t the next one the day we go back?” James asks, “Is it that night?”

“Yep, the night of the 1st,” Sirius groans, “That sounds like an absolute nightmare.”

“We’ll cross that bridge when we get there,” James replies, “Now, it’s your move.”

Sirius looks over at Regulus, who is looking down and pretending that he isn’t intently listening.

“You didn’t hear anything, right Reg?”

“Mhm,” He answers, flipping the page.

“Good,” Sirius goes back to playing Chess.

Regulus is 100% positive that his conclusion is right, Sirius and James are friends with a  _ werewolf _ . Regulus knows he was taught to fear people like that, but Remus seems like the least scary person on this Earth. Lucky enough for them, Regulus couldn’t care less. It really doesn’t affect him. 

Although, it is a very interesting piece of information.

***

“James! Sirius! Come here dears!” Mrs. Potter yells, and Sirius rushes out of the room. Regulus stops playing, feeling particularly confident, he gets up and walks out, peeking around the corner. No one but Remus is standing in the doorway of the house, Mrs. Potter greeting him as James comes flying down the stairs. 

Remus looks  _ rough _ , all things considered. When he walks up to greet James, he’s clearly limping. James gives him a relatively calm hug for his standards, and even then it looks like Remus is telling him to be careful.

Sirius leans up and gives him a kiss before wrapping himself around him. Regulus steps out from around the corner before he can think of the consequences. 

“Hey Reg!” James greets, “Good to see you!”

“You too,” Regulus replies, immediately regretting this choice as James keeps talking.

“What were you playing?” He asks, “It sounded good!”

“Thank you,” Regulus shrugs, “Just an excerpt.”

“Was it the same one you were playing yesterday morning?”

“Different one,” Regulus shakes her head, raising an eyebrow, “Very different.”

“Am I really  _ that _ deaf?” James laughs, “Whoops.”

Remus lets go of Sirius and looks up at Regulus, “Hello Regulus.”

“Hello,” He timidly greets, before deciding that’s enough social interaction and retreats back into the piano room. 

He goes back to playing for two minutes tops before he hears someone knock on the open door. He turns to see Sirius, Remus standing behind him. 

“Hey Reg, do you mind if we chill in here?” He asks, “We’ll be quiet.”

“I don’t mind,” Regulus shrugs, and Sirius smiles.

“Thank you, Reg.” 

They grab a seat on the ground, Remus wrapping his arms and legs around Sirius. Sirius grabs the canvas he was working on, beginning to mindlessly talk to him. 

Regulus turns back to what he was doing, choosing a softer piece in order to definitely  _ not  _ eavesdrop on what they’re talking about. Sirius won’t notice, and Remus doesn’t know he can hear that well. 

“-was just really shitty,” Remus replies, “I don’t want to think about it, tell me how you’ve been.”

“Remember how I told you about my cousin’s daughter?” Sirius says, “Nymphadora?”

“Mhm,” Remus affirms. 

“We babysat her the other day, the three of us,” Sirius softly laughs, “It was fun until she started crying. I walked out. I couldn’t deal with that.”

“That sounds like you,” Remus replies. 

“Reg is somehow so good with her, they fell asleep on the couch,” Sirius says, “It was nice, it felt normal, like what I mentioned last time.”

Regulus hears footsteps come up the hallway and into the room, turning around to see James standing in the doorway.

“Hey lovebirds! Hey Reg!” He walks in and grabs a seat next to Remus and Sirius, “How’s it going, Remus?”

“Eh, better that I’m here,” Remus answers, and Regulus glances over to see him cuddle closer. 

“Glad our house could help,” James laughs, “What’re you two talking about?”

“Nothing really, just babysitting the other day,” Sirius answers. 

“Oh my God, that was so fun,” James says, “She’s so cute, Remus, you have no idea.”

“She is very cute,” Sirius adds, “I’ll have to ask Andy if I can bring you, both to meet Dora and to meet Andy.”

“Already meeting the family,” Remus softly laughs, “Moving fast.”

“Shut up,” Sirius laughs, “You already met the Potters and Reg, and they’re the closest thing I’ve got to family.”

“Reg is literally your brother,” James says, turning around to look at Regulus, “Right Reg?” 

“Mhm,” Regulus answers, continuing to play. 

“He’s offended,” James says for him, although Regulus is not offended in the slightest. 

“Speaking of,” Sirius looks over to Regulus, “Sorry we’re being so loud Reg.”

Regulus just shrugs, because it really is annoying him, so he’s not going to lie and say it’s fine. Sirius immediately catches on to the fact that they’re being too loud. 

“Ok, let’s talk somewhere else, we’re pissing Reg off,” Sirius pulls away from Remus and gets up, “I’ll paint later, come on.”

He helps Remus up and the three of them head out of the room, finally leaving Regulus alone. They only go out into the living room, though, because they’re still loud enough that he can hear them talk. 

He’s dead set on this piece, though, so he just chooses to ignore it. 

***

Sirius rubs the hand of his boyfriend laying on top of him, who is patiently listening to him talk about various things that have happened since he last saw him. He could see the remnants of the full last night, the extra scars, the tiredness, that telltale gruffness to his voice. It’s kinda hot, though, but Sirius didn’t say that.

“You know, Sirius,” Remus cuts into a moment of silence, “I’m almost happy it happened. You’re so much happier.”

“Oh shut up,” Sirius replies, an embarrassing shade of red spreading against his checks, “Although, that’s how I feel about Reg.”

“I mean, I can’t say anything, I didn’t know him before,” Remus admits, “But he seems happy too, in his own way.”

“Yeah, being here has been so good for him,” Sirius says, “I just- I would have felt horrible leaving him at Grimmauld. He was always our mother’s favorite, but that was only because he was obedient. He wasn’t doing well because of her and I knew that.”

“Doing well how?”

“Just- Reg has always been reserved, right? Really really quiet,” Sirius smiles, “I was nervous, you know, he hates our actual family, how is he going to like a whole new one? And admittedly he didn’t, at first, but he came around. He gets along with James, he talks to Mrs. Potter all the time, he walks around the house like it’s his. It’s so relieving to see.”

“He seemed pretty comfortable with James,” Remus comments, “I’ve only seen him in glances, though.”

“I’ll force him to talk to you eventually,” Sirius laughs. Silence falls over them a moment before Sirius keeps talking, “Seeing him with Dora is literally my favorite thing ever.” 

“You’ve barely talked about it.”

“Thanks for the invitation,” Sirius jokingly thanks, “But anyway, he’s just so good with her. Even when he first met her and was more stunned than anything, he was just so nice to her. And Andy came over to drop off food for us, he went and played piano with her. When we babysat, he was so patient, knew exactly what to say. I know he won’t say anything, but watching him be happy to talk to her is really nice, after so many years of the total opposite.”

“Hearing you gush about your brother is adorable,” Remus says, looking up at him.

“Stop it,” Sirius whines, his cheeks heating up again.

Sirius is saved from more compliments from Remus by Regulus walking out of the piano room. 

“Hey Reg,” Sirius greets, “How’re you?”

“Good,” Regulus pauses a moment, “You’re beet red.”

“Wow, thanks for pointing that out,” Sirius jokingly rolls his eyes. 

“You’re welcome,” Regulus remarks before walking off into the kitchen. 

“Oh, Reg,” Sirius looks back, “Did you take that sweatshirt I had laying out here?”

“No,” Regulus looks back, “James did.”

“Of course he did,” Sirius sighs, “He always steals my shit.”

“So do you,” Regulus comments. 

“Hey!” He laughs. 

“Shh, quieter please love,” Remus rubs his eye with his free hand. 

“I’m sorry,” Sirius says, much quieter, pressing a kiss to the top of his head. 

James comes down the stairs, somehow sending that Regulus was in the kitchen, “Hey Reg!”

“Hi James,” Regulus replies.

“Are Sirius and Remus making out in the living room?” 

“Oh fuck you,” Sirius curses. 

“You’re lucky Mum isn’t home,” James laughs, “She’d have your head for swearing.” 

“That’s why I curse when she  _ isn’t  _ home,” Sirius says, “That’s the whole point.”

“But anyway,” James walks over and grabs a seat in the armchair across from them, “How’s it going?”

“Since you saw us last 10 minutes ago?” Sirius laughs, “Fantastic.”

Regulus goes to walk back into the piano room, but James stops him. 

“Reg, come join us!” James gestures to the other armchair, “I don’t want to third wheel alone, and I don’t think you’ve really met Remus.”

“He hasn’t,” Sirius looks to Regulus, “I don’t care if you come sit.”

Regulus sighs and walks over, sitting in the chair but not saying anything. He, admittedly, looks uncomfortable, but sucks to suck. He’ll get over it. 

“So Reg, that’s Remus,” James points, “Remus, that’s Regulus. Bam, you’ve met.”

“We’ve met before,” Remus says, “But nice to see you anyway, Regulus.”

Regulus gives him a small smile but doesn’t say anything. 

“You have to respond, Reg,” Sirius chides. 

“He’s fine,” Remus brushes him off, “Don’t scold your brother, he’s like 14.”

Regulus cocks half a smile, “I like him.”

James and Remus laugh, but Sirius just rolls his eyes. 

“All I do, betrayed,” Sirius dramatically says, “I’m deeply offended.”

“Good,” Regulus deadpans. 

“Oh, James,” Sirius looks at him, “You stole the sweatshirt I was looking for this morning?”

“Uh, did I?” James asks, clearly having no idea if he actually did. 

“You were cold last night, you walked in to talk wearing it,” Regulus reminds him. 

“Oh yeah yeah yeah, I remember,” James nods, “It was like four in the morning.”

“Two questions, one, why were you up at four in the morning?” He points to James, “Two, why were you up at four in the morning?” He points to Regulus. 

“Well  _ I  _ heard music, I got confused,” James explains. 

“So why were you playing piano when you should be sleeping?”

Regulus shrugs, “Couldn’t sleep.”

“Of course, that was a stupid question,” Sirius sighs, “Why can't you all just sleep normally?”

“Says the one who climbs on top of me at least three times a week to fall asleep,” James laughs, “You’re one to talk, Sirius.”

“Ok see, we didn’t have to talk about that,” Sirius suppresses a laugh, “We didn’t have to talk about it, nope.”

“I don’t know how you live with us, Reg,” James jokes, “I’m loud, and Sirius is an idiot.”

“Hey hey hey, so many things you could have called me and you called me that?” Sirius argued, “I would’ve preferred clingy to an idiot.” 

“Ok fine, Sirius is clingy and I’m loud,” James concedes. 

“I’m aware,” Regulus replies. 

“Oh Remus,” James looks over to Remus, “How late are you staying?” 

“Until I get kicked out,” Remus cuddles closer into Sirius, who gladly accepts it, “My mum isn’t home, so I’d much rather be here.”

“Is that why all your cuts are untreated?” Sirius asks, his concern spiking. Sirius knows Remus’ father doesn’t know how to and is scared to treat Remus after a full moon. 

“They’re not untreated, per se,” Remus hesitates, “They’re just not treated with anything good.”

“Hold on,” James gets up and runs upstairs. Sirius is hoping he’s going to get some of Mrs. Potters’ healing remedies because they’ll definitely help. 

He comes back down the stairs and hands Sirius a small vial labeled ‘Cut Salve’. “It won’t help those deep ones on your arm, but it might help the ones over your face.”

Sirius nods before looking to Remus against him, “Sit up, love.” Remus sighs but listens and turns to face Sirius.

“You’re good with that right?” James asks, and Sirius nods, “Ok cool, I’ll be right back, don’t spill it or Mum will have my head.”

“I won’t, don’t worry,” Sirius assures him, and James runs off upstairs. Sirius opens the bottle in his hands. 

“You don’t have to, Sirius,” Remus tries to argue, but Sirius shakes his head. 

“Yes I do,” Sirius replies, and Remus doesn’t press further. Sirius takes a little in the dropper, but soon realizes he has no idea what he’s doing. 

“You don’t know what you’re doing,” Regulus gets up and walks into the kitchen, grabbing a hand towel before coming back and standing next to Sirius. He holds out his hand, “Give.”

Sirius hesitantly hands it to him, getting up to move out of the way. Regulus takes a seat in front of Remus, calmly pressing the towel right below the cut before dripping the liquid on the cut. It heals almost immediately, leaving only a faint scar. Sirius smiles down at his brother, surprised he stepped up to help someone he doesn’t really know. 

Regulus sits back and screws the lid on, handing it back to Sirius before getting up.

Remus looks up at Regulus, “Thank you, Regulus.”

Regulus gives him a small smile before walking off into the piano room. Apparently, that was enough for him. 

Sirius sits back on the couch and Remus turns to lay with his back to him again. 

“He’s nothing like you, Sirius,” Remus looks up at him. 

“Oh, I’m aware,” Sirius laughs, “And he walked away without saying anything, that little-.”

“Sirius,” Remus stops him, “I don’t care, that was his you’re welcome, be nice.”

Sirius huffs but doesn’t reply. 

“You act like you weren’t just gushing about him 5 minutes ago,” Remus softly laughs. 

“Like I tell James, welcome to siblings.”

James comes running down the stairs again, “Guess whose back!”

“We were really missing you, James,” Sirius deadpans, “It just felt incomplete without you.”

James immediately thinks of something to talk about, “Oh my God, Remus, did I tell you about what happened at dinner yesterday?”

“Oh lord,” Sirius groans.

“No you haven’t,” Remus laughs, “Go ahead.”

“Ok so…”


	14. Abandonment

Sirius leans back when he hears the door open. He sees Mr. and Mrs. Potter walk in, Mrs. Potter walking over to where the three of them are. 

“Hello, dears,” She puts a hand on the back of the couch, “Where’s Regulus?”

“He was just out here, he’s in the piano room,” James points to the room, “Did you say hi to Remus?”

“I said hi to Remus when he walked in, James,” Mrs. Potter looks down to Remus, “Although, I didn’t get to ask you, when do you have to be home? You can stay as long as you would like, it’s no problem, I just don’t want to keep you too long.”

“Until you guys tell me I have to leave,” Remus shrugs. 

“It’s a little late, do you want to stay the night?” She asks, “You’re more than welcome to, as you and Sirius look awfully comfortable.”

Sirius bows his head to hide the fact that he’s definitely blushing out of embarrassment, he was hoping Mrs. Potter  _ wouldn’t _ acknowledge that. Remus, however, is completely unaffected. 

“I would love to if it’s not a problem,” Remus answers, “I don’t have to stay, though, I know I didn’t provide any warning or anything.”

“Nonsense, stay the night, it’s not an issue at all,” She assured him, “One more kid is no problem.”

“Thank you, Mrs. Potter,” He smiles, “I really appreciate it.”

“Of course of course,” She says, her eyes fixing on some deep cuts left on Remus’ arm, “My God, dear, have those not been treated or anything?”

“We just treated one on his face,” James chimes in, “But I don’t know where the deep cut salve is.”

“They’re fine,” Remus shakes his head, pulling the arm in closer to his chest.

“No no, let me fix those up,” Mrs. Potter heads up the stairs, and Remus sighs.

“I don’t want your mum fussing over me,” He crosses his arms, “I’m already staying the night.”

“She fusses over everyone, you’re included,” James replies, “You’re not getting out of it if she thinks you’re not 100%.”

“I know I’m not,” He pulls away from Sirius to sit up, much to Sirius’ dismay.

Mrs. Potter comes back down the stairs, a different bottle from before in hand. She takes a seat next to Remus and holds her hand out, “Can I see your arm, dear?”

Remus holds out his arm and she delicately grabs it, taking a look at it before opening the bottle.

“Ok, this is going to sting a little, but you have to stay still,” She tells him, “It’ll help make sure it heals and doesn’t get infected or anything.”

Remus nods, “I go through this a lot, don’t worry.”

Sirius grabs his free hand, and Remus squeezes it as Mrs. Potter drops the liquid over the cuts, although they heals right up. There’s only a faint scar left, and Sirius has come to learn that’s a result of waiting too long.

Mrs. Potter sits back and looks up at Remus, smiling, “Better?”

He nods, “Very, thank you.”

“Is there anything else you need me to treat?” She asks, “And don’t say no because you don’t want to bother me.”

“They’re fine,” He tries to assure her, although it doesn’t work. 

“No, show me,” She shakes her head, “If you were at school, Poppy would have treated it.”

“Fair,” He sighs, leaning down to pull up the bottom of his jeans, and Sirius leans over to see a huge cut going diagonal across his right leg.

“Holy- Is that why you were limping?” Sirius asks, and Remus nods.

“My dad said it looked too much like a bite, he was scared to get near it,” Remus quietly says.

“My goodness,” Mrs. Potter gets up and pats the couch, Remus putting his leg up where she was. She runs a finger along it, and Remus sucks air through his teeth and returns to squeezing Sirius’ hand. “I’m sorry dear, I just think I’m going to need to wrap this instead. I’ll be right back, alright?”

Remus nods and Mrs. Potter goes back upstairs. “I’m not enjoying this experience,” Remus sighs.

“She’s rightfully concerned with you,” Sirius wraps and arm around Remus’ neck, “You’re hurt.”

“I’m fine,” Remus argues, “They’ll heal.”

“In huge scars,” Sirius says, “And it’ll hurt, you know this is better.”

Remus leans back against him and sighs again, “I hate that you’re right.”

Mrs. Potter comes back down the stairs with a few more things in hand, “I know you don’t like this, but I’d be a horrible mother and healer if I let you walk around with an injury like that.”

“It’s not that bad,” Remus shrugs, “I’ve felt worse.”

Mrs. Potter just sighs, beginning to dress the extremely concerning cut. 

***

  
  


Remus wakes up to a thud, presumably the sound of someone going down the stairs. He looks to Sirius, who seemed to barely effected by it. Odd, since Sirius wakes up at everything, and it sounded pretty loud to Remus. Although, considering the full was a couple of days ago, he can guess a reason why it sounded so loud.

Considering there are only 4 people upstairs, and three of them are in the same room, Remus figures it was Regulus going down the stairs. Getting curious, Remus slides out of Sirius’ grip, much to his dismay, although he doesn’t wake up enough to question where he’s going. 

Remus makes his way out of the room and heads down the stairs slowly. before he gets to the bottom, he hears the sound of piano music start, although it sounds almost distressed. He had heard Regulus playing yesterday, and it sounded calm and even. Nothing like this.

He stands outside of the room for a moment, listening to the song he’s playing speed up. The notes begin to fall off, and everything sounds wrong, as if he isn’t even watching what he’s playing.

Finally, Remus opens the door, quietly enough to not catch Regulus’ attention unintentionally.

“Reg?” He says just over the music. It still terrifies the poor boy, whose head flies around to look at Remus panickedly, “It’s just me, I’m sorry.”

He’s crying, it’s the first thing that Remus notices, and he looks exhausted. He looks away from Remus, although he doesn’t look any less scared of him. Remus watches his breathing hitch over and over, to the point where he doesn’t think he’s actually breathing.

Ok, well now he has to help.

“Hey Reg,” Remus takes a couple of slow steps forward, “Are you alright?”

Regulus nods, although it’s not very convincing.

“Can I come sit?” He asks, walking a little closer.

Regulus just moves over, and Remus takes that as an invitation to come sit next to him. He looks over to Regulus, who is admittedly a panicking mess. Remus contemplates going to get Sirius for a moment, but decides against it. He’ll get him if he needs him.

“You need to breathe, Reg,” He calmly says, but Regulus just shakes his head. That’s not the answer he’s looking for.

Remus places his hands on the piano, taking a deep breath before playing one of the only things he knows how to. His mother always taught him Beethoven, and even though he was never any good at it, he at least knows Regulus will know it. And that’s his only hope at calming him down enough to talk to him.

It only takes a couple of bars before Regulus starts to shakily play with him. Remus goes intentionally slow, because it looks like he’s shaking too much to play it any faster. 

By the time they get to the middle of the song, which is as far as Remus knows by heart, Regulus is at least breathing easier. It’s working. Good.

Regulus takes up for him, seemingly dead set on finishing it the piece. He places his hands on his knees when he finishes, still worked up but not nearly as much as before. Remus starts again, on another piece, and they play that one too. 

Remus looks back at him, “Better?” Regulus nods, not looking at him. Remus pauses a moment before asking, “Do you want to talk about it?”

“Just a nightmare,” Regulus whispers, wiping his eyes.

Remus nods, “Do you want to talk about what happened?”

Regulus shakes his head, “Just Sirius.”

“About Sirius?”

Regulus nods, catching himself before he goes any going any further. “I’m sorry.”

“No no, you’re fine,” Remus assures him, “What about Sirius?”

Regulus sits there for a second, clearly contemplating if he wants to tell him. “Leaving,” He answers so quietly Remus almost doesn’t hear him, “Almost the same one every night.”

“Are you afraid of him leaving?”

Regulus shrugs, “A little. It’s stupid.”

“It’s not stupid,” Remus shakes his head, “You’re justified in that, it’s a scary thought, he’s family.”

“It’s not just him,” Regulus shakes his head, “Sometimes it’s other people.”

“Who?”

“My cousins, James, Mrs. Potter,” He lists, “Anyone close to me, so not many people. Sometimes it’s just my mother, though. No one leaving.”

Remus just nods, beginning to realize he’s opening up a can of worms he doesn’t think he knows how to handle. He struggles to console Sirius’ deep-set trauma, and it seems like Regulus has just as much. And he hasn’t had the same support system Sirius has. But he’s already here, and he can hear how much Regulus needs the help.

“I just- I know I can’t help much, but Sirius really cares about you. A lot,” Remus hesitates a moment, “He was talking to me yesterday about how happy he is you’re here with him. He’d kill me if he knew I told you this, but I honestly don’t really care.”

Regulus looks at him, confused, “He what?”

“He was talking about you,” Remus repeats, “About how happy he is that you’re comfortable here, and how he would have regretted leaving you at- whatever you call your childhood home. He loves you, and I don’t think he’s going anywhere.”

Regulus wipes his eyes again, taking a breath but not saying anything. Remus lets the silence sit for a moment, trying to figure out what to say next. This is nothing like consoling Sirius.

“Do you want a hug or anything?” Remus asks, taking the only next step he knows how.

Regulus shakes his head, cowering away slightly. Ok, this is  _ really _ nothing like consoling Sirius. Remus is much more used to someone laying on top of him, gripping onto him while they talk. Even at the mention of a hug Regulus moved away, fabulous. 

“That’s ok, that’s alright,” Remus hesitates, “Do you want to keep talking?”

Regulus shrugs, going to say something a couple of times but faltering. 

“I can just stay with you, if you want,” Remus suggests, “We don’t have to talk.”

“You don’t have to stay,” Regulus quietly says, “It’s early.”

“It’s not a problem,” Remus assures him, trying to hide the fact that he is exhausted. The full moon was two days ago, he’s not exactly set up to be up at 4am with his boyfriend’s little brother, but Regulus doesn’t have to know that.

Regulus just stares at him a moment, “I’m fine. I just- I’m alright now, I just want to be alone.”

“Are you sure?” Remus asks, “It’s really no problem.”

“No, I do,” Regulus repeats, and Remus nods and gets up from the piano bench. 

“I’ll leave you be then,” He smiles at him, “Try to get some more sleep, Reg.”

Regulus nods, pausing a moment before looking up at him, “Thank you.”

“Of course,” Remus says, “I’ll see you in the morning.”

Regulus nods and looks back to the piano, and Remus walks out of the room. He’s careful to shut the door quietly behind him, limping his way back up the stairs. When he walks in the room, Sirius is awake, grabbing for him to come back to bed. 

He climbs into bed next to him, and Sirius buries his head back into his shoulder.

“Where were you?” Sirius quietly asks, his voice slightly muffled.

“It’s not important-”

“Nope, tell me,” He slurs. 

“Go back to sleep, I’ll tell you in the morning,” Remus attempts to bargain.

“I’m not going back to bed until you do, because I think I know where you were,” Sirius whispers adamantly.

“Fine,” Remus sighs, “I was with your brother.”

“What happened?” Sirius questions.

“He had a nightmare, I walked in and called his name and he was a mess,” Remus hesitates, “I talked to him about it, he’s alright now.”

“What was it about?” Sirius asks, “He won’t tell me what’s going on, he’s been waking up every night.”

“If he won’t tell you, I’m not going to,” Remus runs a hand through his boyfriend’s hair.

Sirius huffs in frustration, “I’m just nervous.”

“I know, but it’s alright,” Remus assures him, “We talked about it a little, and for now he’s alright. Go back to sleep love.”

Sirius sighs, but doesn’t say anything else, instead moving in closer. Remus knows he’ll ask him about it again, Sirius is nothing if not stubbornly protective. 

But for now, he’s going  _ back to sleep _ .


	15. No No No!

Regulus grabs his seat at the table, watching as Sirius comes down the stairs with a much taller Remus on his back. James is behind them, laughing at the scenario.

“Be careful!” Mrs. Potter scolds, “Don’t play on the stairs!” 

“We’re fine we’re fine,” Sirius reaches the bottom and walks Remus over to the table, setting him down so he can take his added seat on Sirius’ left. James grabs his seat, smiling over at Regulus.

“Good morning Reg!” James greets.

“Good morning,” Regulus replies, looking over as Mr. Potter walks in the room. 

“Good morning boys,” He says as he grabs his seat, “Every time I sit at the table, there are more people here.”

“That’s just not even true,” James points out, “We’ve had this number of people at the table before.”

“Hush James, I’m kidding,” Mr. Potter brushes him off, “I love seeing a full table.”

Mrs. Potter sets down the plates of food at the table, their own empty ones already being in front of them. She grabs a seat and they all grab breakfast, James’ voice immediately filling the air.

“Are we doing anything today?” He asks.

“You have a friend over, James, isn’t that enough?” Mrs. Potter replies.

“I was just asking,” He says, “I’m just interested.”

“No, we’re not,” His mother sighs, smiling.

An owl interrupts their conversation, landing in the window, holding a letter. Mr. Potter gets up from the table, grabbing it and reading the front, “Sirius, you’re the winner.”

“Oh, that must be Andy,” Sirius grabs the letter and looks at it a moment, “Yes it is, good.”

“What’d you write her about?” Regulus asks.

“She needs  _ more  _ babysitting,” Sirius replies, “This weekend, there’s something at the Ministry.”

Mr. Potter nods, “Mhm, there’s a Ministry dinner this weekend, and those are always painfully long. Is she a Ministry worker?”

“No, her husband is I think,” Sirius answers.

“That’ll do it, and you can’t really bring kids to dinners like that.”

“All of us?” Regulus asks.

“That’s what I asked,” He says, “I also asked if I could bring Remus because I’m greedy.”

“Of course you did,” Regulus mumbles, going back to eating.

“The 4 of us taking care of a child?” James laughs, “That sounds like a nightmare waiting to happen, I can’t wait.” 

“You don’t know if she said yes yet, do you?” Remus points out.

“It’s Andy, I don’t think she cares at all,” Sirius shrugs, “As long as you’re not mean or violent.”

“Remus is the furthest thing from violent or mean,” James says, “I think we should be safe.”

“Enough chatter, eat boys,” Mrs. Potter calmly chides, and the three of them go back to eating.

Regulus is excited about the sentiment of going back to babysit. It was actually enjoyable last time, and he got some sleep. 

Good, something to look forward to.

***

The pack of 4 boys walks up to Andromeda’s door, Sirius knocking on it.

To their surprise, a particularly distressed Ted opens the door, “Hello boys! There’s more of you, wonderful because Dora is not having a good day. Come in come in.”

They all walk in, kicking off their shoes and heading up the stairs. Regulus can hear a child’s sobbing coming from down the hallway, Andromeda calmly trying to bargain with it. It’s not working, because the crying voice just gets louder.

“Yeah, sorry we’re leaving you with that,” Ted sighs, “She’s been off all day.”

“We’ll figure it out,” Sirius replies, “Between the 4 of us someone will.”

“And by someone you mean Reg?” James says. 

“Yes, that’s exactly what I mean,” Sirius looks at Regulus, who just rolls his eyes.

Andromeda comes out of the door down the hallway, looking absolutely frustrated. “Ted, can you go in there?” She asks, “Before I start yelling.”

“I got it dear,” He gives her a kiss as they cross in the hallway, “Don’t worry.”

She sighs before walking up to the group of them, “I’m so sorry, I’m currently trying not to commit a crime against my own daughter. It’s nice to see you all again, thank you for coming to help.” She looks to Remus, who is standing just behind Sirius, “You must be Remus.”

He nods, “I am.”

“It’s nice to meet you, although it’s not the best circumstance. Sirius has talked my ear off about you,” She laughs, and Sirius groans.

“Andy!”

“It’s the truth,” She shrugs, smiling.

“So, hold on,” Sirius says, “What are you leaving us with? What’s wrong?”

“Well, she had a meltdown this morning over nothing,” Andromeda sighs, “She’s been off all day, and she really  _ really  _ does not want us going anywhere. And now I’m leaving her with four 15-year-old boys, so that’s really wise.”

“We’re actually 16, so I think we’ll be fine,” Sirius sarcastically replies.

“Actually, I think we’ll be fine because the 14-year-old knows what he’s doing,” James argues, laughing.

“Well, whatever happens, we’ll be fine,” Sirius looks back to Andromeda, “So don’t worry.”

“I will anyway but thank you for trying,” She laughs, turning around as Ted makes his way down the hallways with Nymphadora in his arms. She’s clutching to him for dear life, but she’s not screaming anymore. Her hair is distinctly blue, not its normal color at all. 

Ted closes his eyes for a moment before looking to his daughter, “Ok Dora, Mum and I are going to leave you-”

“No!” She yells, “No no no!” 

Just kidding, she is screaming.

“Look at who you’ll be with dear,” Andromeda puts a hand on Nymphadora’s back.

“No leaving!” She yells again.

“Just look,” Andromeda sighs, and Nymphadora looks over for a moment before burying her face back in her father’s shoulder.

“Don’t leave,” She pleads, “Stay.”

“We have to go, only for a little bit, though,” Ted says, “We’ll be back so soon, you won’t even notice Dora.”

“Mmm,” She shakes her head.

“Who do you want to hold you?” He asks, “That’s not me or Mum.”

She just shakes her head again, not giving any indication of an answer. 

“Regulus, you win,” Ted sighs, “You’re our best option, sorry.” 

He holds out his arms and takes the girl, who shakes her head over and over trying to stop whatever’s going on.

She wraps herself around Regulus, not saying anything or yelling. Ted sighs with relief before quickly urging Andromeda down the stairs, to which she seems to understand the urgency. 

“We’ll be back in a couple of hours, these things drag on forever,” Andromeda half whispers, “Good luck guys!” 

“Wait wait wait,” Sirius stops them “What the hell do we do when she starts screaming again?”

“Breathe with her or something, just don’t yell,” Andromeda says before walking out the door after Ted. 

Just as the door clicks closed all the calm in the room disintegrates, and Nymphadora is back yelling, “No no! Come back!” 

Regulus tries to move away from the yelling directly in his ear, although it’s still painfully loud. Her hair changes to orange, and she’s clearly upset they won’t come back. The other 3 of them just stand staring at Regulus, somehow hoping that he knows what to do. Hasn’t James dealt with kids growing up? Why is this Regulus’ job?

He gets an idea, slipping by into the living room and taking a seat on the couch. He sits her back in front of him, and she’s visibly really worked up. He takes both her hands, and she pulls away the first time. He just grabs them again, and the second time she doesn’t.

“Ready Dora?” He calmly asks, knowing she doesn’t know what yet.

“For what?” She tearfully asks. 

“We’re going to breathe together, it’ll be fun,” He assures her, raising her arms up in the air, “In.” 

She takes a shaky breath in, and he smiles at her.

“Mhm,” He lowers her arms down, “Out.”

She releases said shaky breath. 

He nods, “Again?”

“Again,” She says, and they repeat the exercise. Arms up and down. Over and over until her hair fades back to the muted blue-purple mix. That’s as good as it’s going to get, and that’s good enough.

Regulus looks over to the three of them, who haven’t moved and are just staring at him. He looks at them confused, “What?”

“Nothing, nothing,” Sirius walks in and grabs a seat on the other side of the couch, James and Remus following to sit next to him. They leave Regulus and Nymphadora on their own side of the couch. 

“Where did you even  _ think  _ of that?” James asks as he takes his seat.

Regulus shrugs, “A vision.”

Nymphadora stares at Remus for a second before pointing, “Who’s that?”

“This is Remus,” Sirius answers, “He’s one of our friends.”

She stares at him in dismay, “He’s scary.”

“He’s not scary Dora,” Sirius immediately jumps to defend him, “There’s-”

“Sirius,” Regulus stops him, not wanting Sirius’ stupid defense of his boyfriend against a 3-year-old to mess up all the calming work he just did. He looks at her, “Why is he scary?”

She points at him again, “His face is scary.”

James stifles a laugh, and Sirius shoots him a look. “Sorry it was funny,” James mumbles. 

“Because of the scars?” Regulus asks calmly, and she nods, “They don’t make him scary, he just got hurt. He’s still nice even if you think he’s scary.” 

She looks at Remus a moment before giving him a hesitant wave, “Hi.”

“Hello,” He smiles, waving back at her. He seems totally unaffected by being called scary. Granted, she’s three and just had a huge breakdown, so maybe that helps.

She smiles, looking back to Regulus, “He’s nice.”

“See?” He says, “I didn’t lie.”

Nymphadora climbs down and pushes Sirius out of the way, climbing up between him and Remus. She stands up on the couch and runs a finger across one of Remus’ scars. Sirius looks like he’s biting back telling her to stop, while Remus just looks a little confused.

“That feels funny,” She comments, doing it to the one they healed earlier in the week.

“Careful,” He pulls away, “That hurts.”

She looks at him dejectedly before doing it again, Remus delicately pushing her hand away. She shakes her head and pokes it harder.

“Ow ow,” Remus tries to push her away again, “Please don’t do that.”

“You made her cry, Moony,” James says, half laughing. Remus looks at him and he stops laughing, getting up to try and grab Nymphadora. 

“No!” She tries to kick away from him, nailing Remus in the arm. He moves away from her, clutching the spot on his arm that she just hit. She manages to kick away from James and runs off loudly into her room, slamming the door surprisingly loud. 

Regulus looks back to Remus, whose sleeve is pulled up to his shoulder. The spot on his arm that she kicked, of course, had an unhealed cut on it, which is now  _ bleeding _ . Sirius immediately moves over and grabs his arm.

“Oh shit,” Sirius sighs, getting up and walking off down the hallway.

James looks at Remus, “Are you ok?”

“Yeah, it’s fine,” Remus replies, looking up as Sirius comes back into the room. He hands Remus a tissue to wipe all the blood off his arm before Sirius starts to put a bandage on it.

“Reg,” James calls Regulus’ attention, “You’re gonna have to go talk to her, you know that right?”

Regulus sighs but nods, getting up to walk down the hallway. He stands outside her door, where she is loudly crying and seemingly throwing things. He knocks on the door quietly.

“No!” She yells. This is going to be fun.

“Dora, it’s Regulus,” He says, going to crack open the door. 

She pushes back against the door, and Regulus decides maybe that isn’t going to work. He decides to simply stand there, letting her just throw things around for a couple of minutes. 

Once he doesn’t hear things hit the wall anymore, he knocks again, “Can I come in Dora?”

The door opens, meaning yes, he can come in. He walks into the room, which is distinctly like a kid’s room. The walls are deep purple, much like her normal choice of hair color, and there are toys absolutely everywhere. Although that’s probably half attributed to her throwing everything around. 

She’s sitting in the corner of the bed, sobbing to herself, looking angrily at Regulus. He shuts the door behind him, walking over and taking a seat a few inches away from her.

“What’s wrong?” He asks, not really knowing what on Earth he’s supposed to do. 

“Mean,” She shakes her head.

“Remus?” He clarifies, and she nods, “You hurt him, Dora.”

“No, I didn’t!” She yells back. Ok, maybe they’ll deal with that later.

“Can you come here?” He tries. Thankfully he’s successful, and she climbs up into his lap and holds onto him. He lightly rocks her back and forth, immensely confused as to what he’s going to do. He’s not any good at this, she just likes him.

Finally, he sits her back, “Are you ok?”

She nods, “‘M ok.”

“You need to apologize to Remus,” He tells her, mentally crossing his fingers that this doesn’t backfire.

“Why?” She asks, crossing her arms defiantly. 

“You hurt him-”

“I didn’t,” She shakes her head.

“Yes, you did,” Regulus maintains, “Do you want to go see?”

“Mhm,” She grabs back onto him and he picks her up, carrying her into the living room. 

Remus is laying on Sirius, Sirius’ arms tightly wrapped around him. James is sitting in front of them, talking about God knows what. 

They all look over when Regulus walks in, James speaking up first, “Hi Reg! Hi Dora!”

Regulus waves before taking a seat, looking at Remus a moment before saying, “Can I see your arm?”

Remus holds his arm out, the cut that was previously open now bandaged. Regulus points to the bandage before looking at Nymphadora, who is looking at it. 

“See?”

She looks up at Remus, teary-eyed, “I’m sorry- um,” She looks at Regulus, “What’s his name?”

“Remus,” Regulus reminds her.

“I’m sorry Remus,” She apologizes, “I didn’t mean to.”

“It’s ok,” He smiles at her.

She smiles back, and her hair  _ finally  _ turns back to its normal deep purple. 

“Why don’t you kiss it to make it better?” James suggests, “Carefully.”

“Ok!” She goes over and lightly kisses the bandage before crawling back to Regulus’ lap, “All better!” 

Remus lets out a small laugh, “Yes, all better now.”

“Good job!” James congratulates.

Nymphadora gets off Regulus’ lap and grabs his hand, dragging him over to the  _ damn animals _ . She goes and gets James too, but leaves Remus and Sirius be on the couch. She pours them out and hands a lion to Regulus and a deer to James. 

“We’re gonna play!” She tells them, James and Regulus look at each other in disgust for a moment before reluctantly turning to play with her. 


	16. Worthless Gang of Three

Regulus feels like he’s going to drop dead.

After what felt like hours of playing with the stupid animal toys, Regulus is  _ exhausted.  _ Considering he got barely any sleep the night before and woke up in such a panic it probably took a few years off his life for the 3rd time this week, it makes sense. But he can’t get up from playing, James left for 5 minutes and Nymphadora threw a fit. 

Regulus yawns for the 3rd time in 2 minutes before taking the figure that Nymphadora is offering.

“Reg, if you’re tired go take a nap or something,” James suggests, “I’ll play with her.”

Regulus shakes his head, “I’m fine.”

“And about to fall asleep? It’s fine, Reg.”

“I will not be able to leave,” Regulus reminds him, “Watch.”

He goes to stand up, and Nymphadora drags him back down, “No! Stay stay. Here, take this one.”

She hands him another toy on top of the three he has stockpiled.

James tries reason, “Regulus is tired, he’s gonna go-“

“No he’s not,” She shakes her head, “He wants to play with me.”

James takes a deep breath before looking at Regulus, “This probably isn’t smart, but oh well.”

“James,” Regulus sighs, knowing this is going to be the epitome of all things ending badly. 

“Dora, we’re gonna play later-”

“No!” She cries, throwing a toy at James, “We’re playing now!”

“No, we’re done now,” James gets up, pulling away when she grabs onto him. 

She screams incoherently at him throwing yet another toy in his direction.

“No throwing things,” He scolds, “And don’t-”

She hits him before he can finish.

“And no hitting,” He finishes, tapping Regulus and gesturing for him to stand up. He does, and she gets even angrier. She grabs onto his leg, hugging it as she sob-screams at the both of them.

“What the hell is going on over there?” Sirius asks, and it sounds like he’s been asleep.

“We’re goddamn babysitting Pads, what do you think?” James half-jokingly shoots back. He says what Regulus wishes he could, although Regulus would have said it out of  _ actual  _ anger. That was a stupid question. 

“I hate you!” She screams at James, “We’re not friends!” 

“Dora,” James sighs, looking up at Regulus. Regulus just stares at him, knowing it would have been so much less tiring if they had just kept playing.

“No! I hate you!” She grabs onto Regulus’ leg tighter.

“Let me deal with it,” Regulus waves James off, yawning.

“Sorry, Reg,” He rubs the back of his neck, “Little bit of a stupid choice.”

Regulus just waves him away again, and James walks off to sit on the couch next to Sirius and Remus. Regulus bends down to pick Nymphadora up, ignoring the kicking as he holds her close enough that she stops. She grabs onto him and continues yelling, although it’s nothing intelligible. 

“Oh my god, how is she so loud?!” Sirius groans over the yelling, “Dora! Stop it!” 

She stops yelling but just stares at him for a moment before bursting into tears. She buries her face into Regulus’ shoulder and mumbles something about not loving Sirius anymore.

“Nice one, Sirius,” Regulus deadpans, looking back at him. 

“She’s not yelling anymore,” He tries to offer, but Regulus just rolls his eyes. He can’t tell if the yelling or the crying is worse, but yelling at her was  _ definitely  _ not the choice. 

“Down down down,” She wiggles down and out of his arms, sitting back down where the toys were. Through sobs, she holds another toy up to him, “Take it.”

Regulus takes a deep breath,  _ really _ not wanting to play anymore. Especially with a sobbing child, that’s really low on his list. 

James chimes in from the couch, “What if Remus and Sirius-”

“No! I hate Sirius!” She yells back at him.

“What about Remus?” 

“He’s scary!” She crosses her arms, “I wanna play with Reglus.”

“Reg come sit over here,” James tells him, but Regulus knows that’ll cause more problems than it solves.

“James, that’s stupid,” Regulus replies, trying not to fall as Nymphadora drags at his hand, “Hold on a moment, Dora.”

“No! Now!” She drags at him harder and he half stumbles onto the ground. She throws the toy she wants him to play with at him, and he surprisingly catches it. Who knew Quidditch would help with childcare.

Regulus yawns, “Dora, I’m tired.”

“No!” She throws another toy at him, but he doesn’t catch this one.

“Don’t throw things,” He calmly scolds, “Just hand it to me.”

He holds out his hand and she surprisingly listens, handing him the next toy.

“There, that’s better,” He sighs, “Aren’t you tired? Or hungry?”

“No, I’m not,” She sloppily wipes away tears, “I want to play!”

“Why don’t-” He looks around for something else to do, “Why don’t we read something?”

She angrily crosses her arms and huffs, “Fine.”

Regulus could have cried with relief, “Ok, why don’t you pick out a book?” He points to the small bookshelf up against the wall. 

Nymphadora walks over to the bookshelf and grabs a book off the shelf, handing it to him, “This one this one.”

“This one  _ please _ ,” He corrects her before looking at what she handed him, “Little Red Riding Hood?” He looks up at her and she nods. 

Remus audibly sighs from the couch, and Regulus hears him whisper something to Sirius and James. Although he can’t hear what he said, he’s sure it has something to do with the wolf being the antagonist of it. 

“Do you want to read on the couch or in your room?” He asks. 

“Here,” She says, moving to sit in his lap. He suppresses a sigh, he was hoping maybe he could get  _ off  _ the floor, but as long as she’s not screaming anymore. 

Regulus starts to read the story to her, stopping as she excitedly points to a couple of the pictures. Things are fine until they get to the end, where the picture showed the wolf lying in the bed, dressed in a bonnet and an apron. Nymphadora grabs the book. 

“No no no! The wolf is scary!” She shuts it and puts it down, “I don’t like the wolf.”

“That wolf is bad,” Regulus nods, “That’s right. But some wolves are nice.”

“No, I don’t like them,” She says to him, “They’re all mean.”

He might as well be able to  _ hear _ Sirius fuming behind him. “Why is that?”

“They just are,” She says, getting up and grabbing another book, “This next!”

“Do you want to sit on the couch and read it?” He asks, hoping he can get off the ground.

“No, I like it here,” She hands him the book and takes a seat in his lap again. Regulus looks back to see James laying asleep with his head against Sirius. Sirius also looks asleep, although Remus doesn’t. Good to know if Regulus needs help neither of them is ready to step in, and he’s sure Remus doesn’t want to.

“Goldilocks and the Three Bears,” He reads, softly sighing before reading through the story. This time they made it all the way to the end, and once he closed it she took it from him and went to grab another one.

“Read this one,” She holds out another book.

“Are you sure you aren’t tired, Dora?” He asks, hoping  _ maybe _ he can at least get a minute of rest from her. His brother and both of his friends are serving as no help, and the only one with an excuse is Remus.

“No, I’m not tired!” She protests, shoving the book at him. Regulus glances up at the clock on the wall. It’s 8:30. Andromeda and Ted were supposed to be back a half an hour ago. Amazing. 

“Why don’t we go-”

“No!” She cuts him off, “Read!”

“Read  _ please _ ,” He corrects her, “And I think we should take a break from reading.”

“No break!” She’s yelling again, “I wanna read!” 

“Come on, it’s ok-”

“No!” She gets out of his lap and stands defiantly in front of him. 

He doesn’t even know why she’s upset, he didn’t say they weren’t going to read. Although, he wasn’t planning on it.

“What’s wrong, Dora?” He asks hopelessly.

“You don’t like me!” She screams at him, crying. He takes a deep breath, knowing yelling will solve absolutely nothing. 

“I like you,” He answers, but she shakes her head.

“No, you don’t!” She kicks a nearby storage bin.

“Don’t kick that, come here and we’ll read,” He tries to reason with her, but at this point, she no longer is upset about reading. 

“No!” She kicks it again, spreading the toys out even more. Thrilling. 

He grasps at the only straws he knows, “Do you want to breathe again like before?”

“No I don’t!” She kicks him this time,  _ hard _ . He bites back at scolding her, but he’s really running out of options. He looks back to the worthless gang of three on the couch, who are choosing to ignore Regulus’ clear struggle to reason with her.

“Don’t kick  _ people _ either,” He moves back a little, hoping he doesn’t get kicked again, “It’s not nice.”

She yells incoherently at him before kicking him again, dashing his hope at not getting kicked again. He buries his head in his hands for a second, just letting her yell. God, he feels like he’s going to cry. He’s exhausted, he’s frustrated, and no one is helping him. He might as well be here alone. 

He doesn’t hear the front door open, or Andromeda and Ted come into the house until Andromeda calls his name from the top of the stairs, “Reg?” 

He looks back and sees her already walking over to help, Ted right behind her. 

“Come here Dora, why are you yelling?” Andromeda crouches down, gesturing for Nymphadora to walk up to her. 

Nymphadora just shakes her head, crossing her arms but not saying anything. She’s still crying heavily, and Regulus is pretty sure she doesn’t even know why she’s upset. 

“You have to calm down, Dora,” Andromeda calmly tells her.

“I can’t,” She chokes out, and Ted moves past Andromeda to pick Nymphadora up. She grabs onto him and he walks them off into her room, shutting the door behind him.

Regulus sighs as the room goes quiet, only the sound of soft murmuring on the couch.

“Oh, hi Andy,” Sirius says, and Regulus looks back to see him sitting up, Remus no longer laying on him. He was definitely asleep, or at least half asleep.

“I’ll deal with you in a minute,” She says, not looking back, “Are you ok, Reg?”

“I’m fine,” He replies, yawning, “Sorry, I don’t know what happened.”

“It’s not your fault, don’t apologize,” She stands up and offers him a hand, which he takes gratefully. Once he stands she pulls him into a tight hug, “Thank you so much, Reg, you’re my favorite.”

“Don’t worry about it,” He says before stepping back, glancing over at the three boys looking at them on the couch.

“Are you hungry or anything?” She asks, “I’m choosing to ignore them because they weren’t helping.”

He lets out a small laugh before shaking his head, “I’m fine, thank you.”

“If you say so,” She shrugs, “I’m going to ask you what happened, but you look dead on your feet, go sit.”

He gladly listens walking over and practically falling back on the couch. It is  _ so  _ much better than the floor. 

Andromeda rubs his shoulder, “I’ll be right back.”

He nods and she walks off down the hallway, opening what sounds like the door to Nymphadora’s room. 

“Sorry we didn’t help, Reg,” Sirius apologizes, “We probably should have.”

Regulus chooses not to say anything because he’s admittedly kind of mad he yelled at her and fell asleep. He’s less mad at James, who spent a couple of hours with him on the floor playing with those damn animals. He physically can’t be mad at Remus, since he was told that he was scary and was kicked by her, so he has reason to stay in one place

Andromeda comes back out and takes a seat next to Regulus.

“Is she ok?” Regulus asks before she can say anything.

“She’s fine, Ted calmed her down,” Andromeda says, “Did that happen all afternoon?”

“Kind of,” He shrugs, but Sirius chooses to explain for him before he can continue.

“She cried after you left, and then Reg calmed her down. Then we convinced her not to be scared by Remus but she tried to touch the scars on his face and got mad when he told her to stop because it was a new one. She kicked open a cut on his arm and ran off, but Reg calmed her down again. Reg, Dora, and James played animals but she got mad when they stopped again, and then I think he read to her, right?”

Regulus doesn’t answer him, a  _ little _ frustrated that he told a story that Regulus could have easily told. Maybe he’s just tired, but Sirius is really pushing it.

“Thank you, Sirius, but I didn’t ask you,” She says before looking at Regulus, “Did anything else happen?”

He shakes his head, mostly because he’s still mad Sirius cut him off. 

“Sirius yelled at her,” James adds, “The thing you told us not to do.”

“Way to throw me under the bus, James,” Sirius groans.

“Sirius,” Andromeda sighs, “Really?”

“ _ She _ was screaming, and she wouldn’t stop!”

“We had it,” James argues, “At least Reg did since she was mad at me. We didn’t  _ need _ you yelling.”

“Sorry sorry,” He rolls his eyes.

Andromeda looks at Remus, “This is not at all your fault, for the record,” She says before looking at Sirius, “I’m really regretting letting you bring your boyfriend because apparently, you haven’t helped all. I don’t want to scold you, but I leave her with you because I  _ trust _ you, and laying here is not babysitting, Sirius.”

He looks at her guiltily a moment, “I’m sorry.”

“It’s alright,” She sighs, looking at Regulus, “You look exhausted.” 

“Just a little,” He yawns, going to say something but stopping when he hears footsteps come sounding down the hallway. 

“Oh lord,” Andromeda sighs as Nymphadora comes running around the corner. She clamors onto Regulus’ lap, tightly holding onto him. 

Ted walks up and puts a hand on the back of the couch, “I’m so sorry Reg.”

“It’s ok,” He puts a hand on her back. 

“She really should be asleep,” Ted sighs, “That’s why she’s all upset. She decided apparently you were a better option.”

“Do you want me to help?” He asks.

“You don’t have to,” Andromeda reaches for her daughter, but Nymphadora wants nothing to do with her.

“Let me help,” He gets up, Ted leading him back into her room. He walks over and lays her in her bed, and she tiredly stares back up at him. Ted places a hand on Regulus’ shoulder as he walks up beside him.

“Are you ready for bed now?” He asks, “Regulus put you down.”

“A kiss,” She points to her cheek, “I want a kiss.”

Ted looks at Regulus, “She wants you to give her a kiss on the cheek.”

He nods before leaning over and giving her a kiss, to which she beams back at him. For all the frustration she caused, she’s still a little cute.

“Ok, goodnight now, Dora,” Ted says.

“Goodnight dad, goodnight Reglus,” She pulls the blankets up higher and Ted urges Regulus out.

“Thank you so much,” Ted says as they head back down the hallway. Regulus just nods.

Andromeda is standing at the top of the stairs, and Regulus can hear the other three already at the bottom. “Come on Reg, I love having you here but I’m tired and so are you, so I’m getting you home.”

“Thank you,” He sighs with relief, feeling much the same. He heads down the stairs, ignoring his brother staring at him. He slips his shoes on and heads outside after the other three boys. Andromeda follows them out, grabbing onto all 4 of them.

“You know the deal, close your eyes.”

And suddenly he’s whirled back home. 


	17. Muggle Witch-Hunting

Andromeda walks up knocks on the Potter’s door, Mrs. Potter answering the door almost immediately.

“Hello, dears!” She smiles, stepping back to let them inside. Sirius is the first in, heading right upstairs without a hello or goodbye. Remus sighs and goes to head after him, turning back to wave at Andromeda.

“Thank you for letting me go,” He says. 

“Of course, I’m sorry Dora gave you a problem,” She apologizes, “She doesn’t really understand the concept of other people’s wellbeing yet.”

“It’s ok, I don’t mind,” He shrugs, “She’s three and I’ve heard that from 13-year-olds, so she’s ok.”

“That’s a fair point,” She smiles, “It was nice meeting you for the little time I did, Remus.”

“You too,” He smiles before heading up the stairs after Sirius.

“What happened with Sirius?” Mrs. Potter asks, “Why did he just storm away?” 

“I had to get a little mad at him, he’s just being Sirius,” She sighs, “A little overdramatic.”

“What did he do?” She asks, “Hold on, actually, I don’t want to hold you up so late, I’ll just interrogate one of them.”

“Regulus can probably tell you, I would love to explain it but we just put Dora down for bed.”

“I understand that,” Mrs. Potter laughs, “Come in boys, and thank you for bringing them back, dear.” James and Regulus slip by Andromeda and walk inside. 

“Of course, thank you for letting me steal them again. At least two of them are good help,” Andromeda says before looking to Regulus and James, “Thank you guys, I know I left you with a little bit of a challenge today.” 

“Sorry Sirius is an idiot,” James laughs, and Andromeda rolls her eyes.

“Don’t remind me, I’ll write him in a couple of days when I’m less mad,” She starts to walk off, “Goodbye boys, have a good night!” 

“Bye!” James waves and Mrs. Potter shuts the door. Mrs. Potter looks over to both of them, “Hi Mum!”

“Hi James,” She returns, “Did you have fun?” 

“Mm, something like that,” He laughs, “I had fun, but I find everything fun.”

“Did you have fun, Regulus?”

Regulus just shrugs, because it was probably more frustrating than fun. But, it wasn’t all bad, so it’s not completely a no.

“Go sit in the living room, I’ll make you both tea and listen to the story,” She gestures, and James happily walks off into the living room. Regulus sluggishly follows behind him, grabbing a seat next to him a few inches away. Enough room that he’s not forced to acknowledge him. Although, James doesn’t have the same mindset. 

“So Reg,” James turns to him, “How are you doing?”

“I’m good,” Regulus replies, looking over at James.

“You know, you’re really good with Dora,” James comments, “Are you sure you’ve never dealt with kids before?”

Regulus nods, “Pretty sure.”

“Aren’t you the youngest of like, you, Sirius, and your cousins?”

“I am,” Regulus answers. 

“I couldn’t imagine that, my family is huge,” James says, “There’s always someone younger, but that means that  _ I _ get to take care of them. They’re coming over in like a week and a half or something, right Mum?”

Regulus looks up at Mrs. Potter, who is walking in with two cups of tea. “Two weeks James. Although, I don’t quite know how we’re going to fit any more people in this house if anyone wants to stay here.”

“Doesn’t Uncle Léo normally stay here?” James asks, picking up the cup on the table. 

“Yes, he does, I’ll have to ask if he wants to squeeze himself into the house because we don’t have much room,” Mrs. Potter sighs, “But enough of that, tell me what happened this afternoon.”

James jumps right on the invitation, detailing pretty much the entire night that he remembers, including the nothing that Sirius did. He talks so fast Regulus is surprised Mrs. Potter is even keeping up. Not to mention the continuity of the story makes no sense, as he goes back and adds details several times. Regulus stops listening halfway through, favoring the tea over paying attention to James. He lived it, he doesn’t have to listen.

Mrs. Potter nods once he gets to the end, “Well, that was quite the afternoon you all had.”

“Yeah, so that’s why Sirius is mad,” James laughs, “Andromeda didn’t even get  _ that _ mad at him.”

Regulus looks at James confused, “She didn’t get mad at all.”

“I mean she got kind of mad,” James says, “Like if I got scolded like that I would consider it being mad.”

Regulus just shrugs, because what Andromeda did didn’t portray an ounce of anger. Although, he has a horrible gauge of that, and he recognizes it. 

“Regulus, did anything else happen? Your cousin told me to ask you what happened, but James seemed very excited to tell the whole story.”

Regulus shakes his head, pretty sure James covered the whole story.

“You’re sure?”

He nods again, “James got it all.”

James looks at him for a concerningly long moment, before reaching out towards his face. Regulus involuntarily flinches back, which effectively scares James too. 

“Oh s- I’m sorry, there’s something on your face,” James points, and Regulus quickly brushes at the spot James is pointing at. He doesn’t say anything, a little freaked out about having a hand come at him out of the blue. The room falls quiet and James nervously rubs the back of his neck.

Down the stairs come what sounds like a herd of footsteps, which turns out to just be Sirius dragging Remus behind him. 

“Reg Reg,” Sirius rushes up to him, “Can I ask you a favor?”

“No,” Regulus says without missing a beat.

“Wait wait, just hear me out,” Sirius continues anyway, “Can Remus and I stay in your room tonight and you can stay with James?”

“Absolutely not,” Regulus denies.

“Please?” He begs, “We won’t- you know- anything weird but we just want a room alone. Please Reg?”

“Chill with me, Reg,” James chimes in, “It’ll be fun!” 

Regulus sighs, “Fine. Don’t touch  _ anything _ , I mean it.”

“We won’t, thank you, Reg!” Sirius calls before running off up the stairs with Remus again. 

“I don’t trust him,” Regulus mutters, turning back to finish his tea. 

“Remus is with him, so he’ll make sure Sirius doesn’t do anything stupid,” James says, “Remus is trustworthy.”

“I don’t really know him,” Regulus reminds him.

“Fair,” James shrugs, sitting in a moment of silence before he starts talking again, “Mum, did I tell you about how Dora has the same animals Dianna has?”

“You did mention that, yes,” She nods. 

“They’re apparently a universal thing because Dora is also addicted to them,” James starts, before going on about God knows what. 

Although Regulus feels like he’s going to fall asleep against James, he’s in too deep to just get up now. So he’ll settle for listening to James talk about the story he was there to witness. 

***

Regulus reluctantly climbs into Sirius’ bed, definitely  _ not _ the ideal scenario after dealing with an exhausting toddler all day. He lays facing the ceiling, not looking over as he listens to James loudly get ready for bed. 

“Hey Reg,” James calls, and Regulus looking over to see him lying in bed, facing him, “How’s it going?”

“Alright,” Regulus hesitantly replies, only able to see James through the dim candlelight James has next to his bed.

“That’s good that’s good,” he pauses a moment, “Did you ever share a room with Sirius, you know, when you were younger? I know you both had your own rooms, but like, going anywhere or anything?”

“A few times,” Regulus shrugs, “My cousins too sometimes.”

“All of them?” 

Regulus nods.

“That sounds fun, kinds like a big sleepover,” James laughs.

“It wasn’t,” Regulus replies, “It actually sucked. I prefer being alone.”

“Sounds like you,” James laughs again, “Well, unfortunately, you get to spend the night in here with me, but I promise I’m not that loud. At least when I’m asleep.”

Regulus gives him a small, half-amused smile. 

“Well, I’ll leave you alone to go to sleep,” James leans over and blows out the candle, “Goodnight Reg!” 

“Goodnight James,” Regulus says before rolling over to face the wall. 

Even with exhaustion pulling at him, he still struggles to fall asleep. Wonderful, it’s going to be another restless night.

***

Regulus’ eyes fly open, waking up before the rest of him can. He lays frozen and terrified for a moment before he can sit up, frantically flexing every muscle to remind himself that he isn’t trapped in someone else’s body. Just as that fear melts away it’s replaced by memories of the nightmare he just had. Normally, in his haze of panicked confusion, he’d immediately head downstairs to mindlessly hack away on the piano until he felt like he could breathe again, but he’ll  _ definitely  _ wake James up trying to get out.

But it’s his only good option.

He gets out of bed and  _ tries _ to quietly walk to the door, effectively tripping over something Sirius has laid out on the ground. He catches himself on the wall but loses all hope at going anywhere, crying heavier at the minor inconvenience. He feels like such a  _ baby _ . 

He slides down the wall and sits on the floor, pulls his knees up to his chest, and buries his head in them. He just needs to process less. Even the dark room is too much when he feels the remnants of a Crucio curse crawling all over him. 

He almost flies out of his skin when he hears a tired voice call his name, “Reg? Regulus?”

Right, he’s in here with James. 

He hears footsteps move closer. “Reg, are you ok?” James asks, closer this time.

Regulus looks up at him, and James squats down to get on his level. James, being the oblivious idiot he is, reaches out to put a hand on his shoulder, causing Regulus to not only flinch but move further away from him. 

“Shit, shouldn’t have done that,” James says before taking a seat against the wall a couple of feet away, “It’s just me, Reg, it’s James.”

Regulus nods.

“Uh- shit, do you want me to get Sirius or something?” James suggests, “Or I can just sit here? I don’t know what to do.”

“Stay,” Regulus manages to whisper.

“Ok, I’ll be right here, I’m not going anywhere,” James assures him, “Just reach if you need help, I’ll be right here.”

Regulus nods and goes back to squeezing his eyes shut, sorting through whatever the hell just happened. Eventually, he sort of calms down, enough to form a coherent thought that doesn’t sound like ‘You’re going to die’ or ‘Your mother is going to get you’. 

He looks over to James, who is still looking at him with the same level of concern as before. Although, Regulus is sure it’s been a couple of minutes.

“I’m sorry,” He whispers, apologizing for a few things but primarily waking James up at this ungodly time of night.

“You’re ok, don’t worry,” James says, “Can I move closer?”

Regulus nods and James moves closer to him so they’re sitting as close as they can be without touching.

James pauses for a second before quietly asking, “Do you want to talk about what happened?”

Regulus shakes his head slightly, “Just a nightmare.”

“Do you get those a lot?”

Regulus nods, “Yeah.”

“Does this always happen?” James questions, although very calmly for James. 

“Sometimes,” He answers.

“That has to suck,” James sighs, “You can’t be getting a lot of sleep.”

“I’m not,” Regulus replies, “Not at all.”

“That’s not good at all,” James shakes his head, “You need sleep, Reg.”

“Trust me, I know,” He takes a deep breath, “I’m always exhausted.”

James pauses a looks around the room for a moment, “There has to be something that’ll help, shit, Sirius just lays on top of me.”

“Of course he does,” Regulus mindlessly mutters. That’s the most Sirius thing he can think of, unnecessary human contact.

“Yeah, it’s very him,” James softly laughs, “Uh, is there anything I can do to help?”

Regulus shakes his head, “No, it’s fine. Thank you.”

“It’s no problem,” James hesitates, “Well, what now?”

“I’ll probably go play,” Regulus shrugs.

“Not go back to bed? It’s only like 3:30,” James questions, “You can’t stay up until morning, that’s way too long.”

“It’s not worth it,” Regulus shakes his head.

“Nope nope,” James gets up and offers Regulus a hand, “Come on, let’s at least get off the ground.”

Regulus takes his hand and gets up, taking a seat on his bed. James rummages through something before looking up at Regulus.

“Do you have any particular interest in magical history, Reg?” He asks, “Or at least do you not hate it?”

Regulus just shrugs, not really knowing what James is planning to do with that piece of information. James walks over with what looks like a textbook and takes a seat on the bed next to him, Regulus moving over to give him some room. James moves the pillows so he can lean back, gesturing for Regulus to do the same. 

“Comfortable?” James asks, smiling.

“Mhm,” Regulus nods, moving so he isn’t too close to James, but still not too far away.

“Let’s see, what do you want to hear about?” James idly flips through the book, “Oh here, this is a cool topic. Do you mind if I talk your ear off about muggles hunting wizards? I think it’s kind of cool, but I like history so, I know I need to ask.”

Regulus shrugs, “I don’t mind.”

“Perfect!” James takes a deep breath, “So there are two separate instances of what muggles call witch-hunting…”

James just starts talking continuously, about whatever he feels like. James’ voice and its ever-present excitement is nice, it fills the room but not too much. He talks for a surprisingly long time, going until it starts to fade away as Regulus drifts off to sleep. 

He just keeps talking and talking until Regulus is out cold. 


	18. All of Them?

Sirius drifts awake, happily wrapped in Remus’ arms. He looks up at his boyfriend, who is still dead asleep. He  _ might  _ have lied to Regulus as to why they took the room, but he and Remus thoroughly enjoyed being alone. James is great, but it’s a little weird when he’s in the room and they don’t have any curtain to close. It’s fine, he won’t even know. 

Sirius looks over at the clock next to Regulus’ bed. It’s 9:30 in the morning, which is strange since Mrs. Potter normally wakes them up at around 9 for breakfast. He doesn’t question it too much, because he’d rather be savoring the time laying in bed. He’s enjoying this much more.

He also didn’t hear anyone come out of James’ room last night, which is  _ also  _ odd because every night Regulus has gone down to the piano at around 4 in the morning. 

Remus stirs, moving a hand up further on Sirius’ back. 

“Good morning love,” Sirius smiles, and Remus moves to run a hand through his hair. 

“What time is it?” He lazily asks, glancing over to the clock.

“Like 9:30,” Sirius answers, causing Remus to look at him confused, “I know, I’m just as confused.”

“Mmm, I’ll take it,” Remus says, “Did you hear anyone go down the stairs last night?” 

“Nope,” Sirius replies.

“That’s good, right?” Remus smiles, “That means he actually got some sleep.”

“Not really, he was in there with James,” Sirius sighs, “Let me up, I’ll be right back.”

Remus moves his arms and lets Sirius get up, and he heads towards the door. “Be quiet if you’re going in there, in case they are sleeping,” Remus reminds him.

“I will,” Sirius assures him before heading down the hall. He opens James’ door as quietly as he can, only peeking his head in. He beams ear to ear when he sees, first of all, Regulus asleep, but second of all Regulus asleep against James, who has a History of Magic book in his lap. He doesn’t want to wake them up, so he quickly shuts the door, careful not to make any noise. Although, not everyone wakes at a pin drop like he does. 

Before he can walk back to his room, he hears someone walking up the stairs, turning around to see Mrs. Potter. 

“Good morning Sirius,” She smiles, pointing to the door, “Are they still sleeping?”

He nods, “Yeah, is that why you didn’t call us for breakfast?” 

“Yes, it was. I made breakfast, though, you and Remus are welcome to come and grab some if you’d like,” She offers.

“I’ll ask him, thank you,” He smiles before heading back into Regulus’ room. Remus looks over at him.

“Were they sleeping?” He asks hopefully, welcoming Sirius back to lay on him, an invitation he happily accepts.

“They’re laying next to one another, and James has a textbook across his lap,” Sirius explains. 

“Meaning Reg woke up in the middle of the night and James got him back to sleep?” Remus proposes. 

“Sounds about right, but that’s why we weren’t called to breakfast this morning,” He adds, “Mrs. Potter said she made some, though, if we want any.”

“Do we?” Remus asks, leaving Sirius to make the decision.

“I’m kind of hungry,” Sirius shrugs, “But I kind of don’t want to get up.”

“I mean, we can come back up.”

“But it’s not the same,” Sirius sighs before moving to get up, “Fine, let’s go.”

Remus gets up after him, both of them heading down the stairs to see plates of food laid out on the dining table. 

Mrs. Potter smiles over at them from in the kitchen, “Hello dears! Grab whatever you’d like, it all has heating charms on it so it should be warm.”

“Thank you,” Remus thanks for the both of them.

“And you’re welcome to eat down here, but you don’t have to,” She says. Remus looks at Sirius, who shrugs. Apparently neither of them are very opinionated.

Sirius decides he’s already made it down here, so he grabs a seat at the table, Remus walking to sit across from him. They each grab a plate and fill it, eating in silence for a moment before Remus speaks up.

“How long has Reg been waking up at like 4 in the morning?” He asks, “He did it at the beginning of the week, but that didn’t seem like the first time.”

“My God, he hasn’t been sleeping for at least 2 weeks,” Sirius sighs, “Sometimes he’s fine, but more often than not I either hear him stumble down the stairs or see him exhausted the next morning.”

“I mean, I can’t say anything, because I’m one for no sleep, but it’s not  _ good _ for you.”

“No kidding,” Sirius pokes at some eggs, “And because it’s my stubborn brother, he just doesn’t let people help him unless he’s dying.”

“I think I helped him,” Remus hesitates, “I think.”

“Because, from what you told me, he wasn’t thinking when you went down there,” Sirius points out, “That is the  _ only _ time anyone can get anything out of that kid, I swear. He’s trained way too well.”

“You say, as if you aren’t the same way,” Remus softly laughs.

“Ok, we can call me stubborn later,” Sirius brushes his comment off, “But for now Reg is the stubborn one.”

“You’re both stubborn, it’s your shared trait.”

“I don’t want to think of sharing any traits with him,” Sirius laughs, “Nope, I refuse to accept it.”

“And there it is,” Remus laughs.

“Oh shut up,” Sirius playfully kicks him under the table, “And do not say what I think you’re going to.”

“Beat me to it,” He shakes his head, “Shame.”

Sirius laughs and goes back to his food, eating a few more bites before hearing footsteps come down the stairs. Sirius turns around, seeing a barely awake James lazily walking down the stairs. James smiles when he sees the two of them.

“Good morning guys!” He greets, walking over to grab a seat next to Sirius, “How did you lovebirds sleep? Or not sleep, either one.”

“James,” Remus sighs, looking down to his plate. 

James laughs, “What, was I  _ not _ going to say that? No, absolutely not.”

“You’re an idiot,” Sirius rolls his eyes, “But, I think I should be asking how  _ you _ two slept?”

“Oh, you must have walked in this morning,” James smiles, “Other than the scare at 3:30 in the morning, good!”

“What happened?” Sirius questions.

“Hell if I know, all I remember is hearing someone trip, having a conversation with Reg, and then telling him all about muggle witch-hunting.”

“Really helpful information James,” Sirius deadpans, “Did he wake up from a nightmare? Was it bad? Was he panicking? Maybe some details would be nice.”

“He woke up pretty panicky I think,” James thinks on it a second, “Yeah yeah, because I went to put a hand on his shoulder and I thought he was going to fly into the next room. I’m remembering now.”

“Why the hell did you do that?” Sirius sighs, “You’re a little bit of an idiot James.”

“Only a little bit,” James laughs, “Anyway, you can’t say anything, because he’s asleep so I did something right.”

“I’ll give you that,” Sirius concedes, “Anyway, now that you’re here, are you going to eat something?”

“Of course,” James replies, going to grab a plate and some food, actually joining them for breakfast.

James smiles up at both of them, “So, what’re we going to talk about?”

***

Mrs. Potter knocks on the piano room door, and Regulus turns around to see her peeking her head in. 

“Hello dear, come get breakfast,” She smiles, leaving the door open as she walks off. Regulus gets up and heads out to sit at the table, in his normal spot across from Sirius. Speaking of, down comes Sirius and James, grabbing their stops at the table.

“Good morning Reg!” James greets.

“Good morning,” Regulus replies, yawning. 

“How early were you up?” He asks so casually it might as well have not been an invasive question. 

Regulus shrugs, “4:30ish.”

“That’s the first time you’ve been down here before us in a few nights,” James comments, “So I guess that’s good.”

“Mhm,” He nods. James is right, he has been sleeping better, last night being the first time he hasn’t been able to get back to sleep after a nightmare all week. Granted, he’s had them, but not  _ nearly _ as bad as the week before.

Mrs. Potter sets the food down on the table, looking to Mr. Potter’s empty chair. She walks off toward the hallway where their bedroom is down, “Fleamont!” 

“One minute Mia!” He yells back, and she just rolls her eyes before walking back to the table. 

She takes her seat next to Regulus, “He’s taking too long, we’re starting without him.”

The three boys start grabbing food to put on their plates, James kicking off the conversation. 

“So, is Uncle Léo staying next Friday?” He asks. 

“Unfortunately,” Mrs. Potter sighs, “I told him he’s not going to fit, but he insists he will, so we’re going to have to move around a little bit.”

“Regulus and Sirius have no idea what they’re getting into,” James comments.

“I’ve met some of your family before,” Sirius says, “Right?”

“You met Uncle Léo, Aunt Fiona, and their three kids, but I think that’s it,” James says, “There’s a little more than that.”

“How many more?” Sirius asks, “ _ How _ many people are coming over?”

“Uh, well, I have what, 7? Aunts and Uncles, including Aunt Maria who you won’t see,” James thinks for a moment, “Aunt Esmé and Uncle Sean have 2 kids, one of which has 4 kids. Then Uncle Lionel and Aunt Maria have 2 kids, one of them has an 8-month-old. Uncle Lucien has 3 kids, and then Uncle Léo and Aunt Fiona have 3, who you’ve met.”

“My God,” Sirius marvels, “We’re meeting  _ all  _ of them?”

James looks to Mrs. Potter, who nods, “Mhm, and your mémé is coming too.”  _ Grandmother _ . 

“Oh, and her,” James nods, looking up at his father as he walks up to the table, “Why are you all dressed up?”

“I got a letter this morning, I have somewhere to be in a half-hour,” He sighs, “I try to tell them I’m far too old for this, but they won’t listen.” He picks up a piece of bacon off the plate on the table and eats it.

“This morning?” Mrs. Potter questions, “I didn’t see any post this morning.”

“It was before you woke up,” He says, grabbing another piece of bacon, “Trust me, I don’t want to go.”

“Well if it’s at the Ministry, you ought to leave now,” She points out, “The Ministry is nowhere close.”

“I know,” He leans over and gives her a kiss, “I’ll be back this afternoon, don’t miss me too much.”

“Bye Dad!” James waves as his father walks over to grab his coat. 

“Bye boys,” He waves before heading out the door. 

“Anyway,” James turns back to everyone at the table, “I think you guys will fit in just fine, so I’m choosing to be excited.”

“Of course you are,” Sirius rolls his eyes, “You’re not the one meeting the huge family.”

“Ok fair point, but it’ll be fine! Most of the kids don’t really care who you are as long as you’re not telling them what to do.”

Regulus chooses to not voice his opinion on the matter because he does  _ not  _ want to meet  _ anyone _ . That list sounded really  _ really _ long, and he has a feeling this is going to be nothing like a Black family gathering. 

“How old are these kids?” Sirius asks, “The ones I met were not that young, except for the little girl.”

“I mean like, most of the ones you haven’t met are 8 and younger, with the exception of Alanna who is 11. Lorelei and Lethia don’t count, and neither do Rossetta and Percy because they’re all much older.”

Regulus looks at Sirius, because he recognized two of those names as ones he’s heard at family functions before. Sirius doesn’t look at him, though, so he brushes it off as mishearing it or something. 

“This just sounds extremely loud,” Sirius says. 

“It is, but you get used to it,” James shrugs, “Mum, does everyone  _ know _ Reg and Sirius are here?”

“I’ve told everyone we’ve gotten two new kids, but not much other than that,” She tells him, “I don’t think Rosetta knows, though, because she hasn’t responded to a single letter I’ve written.”

“That sounds right,” James laughs, “She’s busy traveling the world or something.”

“That’s exactly what she’s busy doing.”

“I guess she’ll find out when she shows up, probably an hour late,” He laughs, “Anyway, I think you’re both going to be fine.”

Regulus does not think he’s going to be fine.


	19. Uncle Léo

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> just a note for all of the family chapters: i do not speak french, at all. never taken a french class in my life, and all of this is google translate. i tried to keep it as accurate as possible, but all the translations are there, so even if they're off at least you get the point.

Regulus makes his move against Sirius, who are both in a very intense game of Wizard’s Chess that Regulus is royally losing at. He’s no match for Sirius, never has been. He still plays it with him, though, for some stupid reason.

“So Reg,” Sirius looks up from the board, “How’re you feeling about meeting James’ family?”

Regulus stares at him skeptically, “Is this some sort of strategy?”

“No no, I’m just interested,” Sirius looks back to the game, “I know I’m a little nervous about it, I just wanted to know how you’re feeling.”

“Guess,” Regulus deadpans.

“Ok, so that means you’re totally freaked out, honestly, it’s kind of warranted,” Sirius shrugs, “I mean, the family I’ve met is very nice, but this family produced _James_ , they’re nothing like we’re used to.”

“Most things aren’t,” Regulus argues, “Make your move.”

Sirius looks at his pieces a moment before instructing one of them to move, looking back up to Regulus. “Anyway, you’re right, but you know what I mean. I think you’ll be fine, though, if it’s any consultation.”

“You always say that,” Regulus rolls his eyes.

“And I’ve been pretty accurate,” Sirius points out, “Any other thoughts on it? I’m sure you’ve overthought it to no end.”

“Really forward, Sirius,” Regulus mockingly smiles, “What else am I going to tell you?”

“I don’t know, are you nervous about anything in particular?” Sirius asks, “I’m just trying to get an idea of what’s going on up there, Reg.”

“You don’t have to,” Regulus suggests, “We can pretend it isn’t happening.”

“Until someone walks through the door?” Sirius counters, “What a tactic.”

Regulus sighs, “Shove it, Sirius.”

“Make your move and I will,” He gestures to the Chessboard. Regulus analyzes his choices a moment before moving a piece. 

“Drop it now?”

“Fine,” Sirius huffs, “If you say so.”

Sirius turns his full attention to the game, letting the soft music from the radio a few feet away become the only sound in the room. Regulus is happy he dropped the topic because the thought really is a little unsettling. Regulus doesn’t do well at family gatherings, and he’s been told he _never_ has. Now, not only does James have a big family, but he doesn’t know a single one of them. This is a recipe for disaster. 

Well, he’s got 2 days to figure it out before he meets the first of James’ family. 

***

“Regulus! Sirius! James!” Mrs. Potter yells, “Come out here!”

Regulus reluctantly gets up from the piano, heading towards the kitchen where he heard her yell from. Sirius and James come stampeding down the stairs just as he walks in, making at much noise as humanly possible. 

“I need the three of you to clean the basement because I’m sure it’s a mess,” She instructs, “We’re expecting guests in a couple of hours, so that should be plenty of time. Sound alright?” 

James nods, “We got-” He’s cut off by a knock on the door, all of them looking over. 

“I swear if Léo is already here,” Mrs. Potter mumbles, tossing the towel that was in her hands onto the counter before heading over to the door. She opens it, revealing 5 people on the other side. 

“Surprise!” The man at the front says, laughing at Mrs. Potter’s unamused reaction. Presumably, that’s Léo.

“Léo, I cannot believe you,” She sighs before pulling him into a hug, “You really can’t tell time.”

“I can, I just choose not to,” He laughs, “We’re showing up anyway, I don’t care if your house is dirty.”

Mrs. Potter rolls her eyes before walking over to the woman next to him, giving her a hug as well. 

“You’re hiding your kids,” Mrs. Potter laughs, “Come in, say hello.”

The family of 5 walks in the house, taking their shoes off at the door and turning their attention to the cluster of three boys standing in the middle of the room. The oldest boy walks up first, walking over and giving a hug to James. 

“Hey Haydn,” James greets, “Are you ready? We got double backup this year.”

James moves to gesture to Sirius and Regulus, the former standing in front. It’s almost instinct, Regulus does _not_ like family gatherings. Behind Sirius is just a safer place to be. 

“I think I’ve met you before, Sirius right?” Haydn asks, pointing to Sirius. 

“That would be me,” He answers, “This is my brother, Regulus.”

“Hello Regulus,” Haydn waves, “It’s nice to meet you, I’m Haydn.”

Regulus just smiles back at him, looking to another boy who is choosing to join in. He does not look nearly as nice as Haydn, fantastic. 

“Who are these people, James?” He asks, resting an arm on James’ shoulder despite James being taller than he is. 

“Well, you’ve met Sirius,” James gestures to Sirius, “But that’s his brother, Regulus.”

The boy gives Regulus a half-smile, “Regulus, that’s a stupid name. Anyway, I’m Timothée.”

Regulus nods and smiles again, not really knowing how he feels about his name being called stupid. It’s an interesting introduction, but as long as he keeps his distance it’s alright.

“So James,” Léo walks up, the woman holding a small girl in tow, “Care to introduce us?” 

“Like I said to Tim, you met Sirius, and this is Regulus.”

Léo walks past James and holds out his hand, “It’s nice to meet you, Regulus.” Regulus shakes his hand, he’s much more used to this. “I’m Léo, James’ uncle.”

The woman behind him speaks up next, “And I’m Fiona, and this is Dianna.”

“Hi!” The girl waves. 

Regulus waves back, willing himself not to continue to slip behind Sirius. He’s sure this is giving Sirius his protective brother power trip, but Regulus really just wants to feel safe.

“With more of you here, that means you _all_ get to clean the basement,” Mrs. Potter chimes in, “Although, Regulus, would you stay up here and help me though, dear?” 

He nods, walking off into the kitchen to stand near her instead. 

“Can you keep Dianna up here? Please?” Haydn asks, “She’s just going to make it harder.”

“It’ll be fine, just give her something to do,” Fiona says, setting the girl down and sending her off with the three boys towards the basement, “You can bring her back up if she’s causing a problem.”

They don’t reply, just heading down the stairs to the basement. Regulus turns back to Mrs. Potter, waiting for some sort of instruction as to what she needs help with.

“Ok, I just need some help putting away some of these dishes,” She leans over to whisper to him, “And I know the boys can be a lot, thought I’d give you some buffer time.”

He looks over and smiles at her, “Thank you.” God, he’s happy she knows him well. 

He starts to help her put away dishes, listening in on the conversation between her and Léo. 

“So, Effie, how’d you get two more kids?” He asks, “Finally have three like the rest of us.”

“Oh hush Léo, only you and Lucien have 3,” Mrs. Potter replies, “And must you always be so nosey?”

“Allez, dis moi!” He prods, oddly in French. _Come on, tell me!_

“Ils se sont enfuis de la maison, qui est tout ce que je vous dis,” She answers. _They ran away from home, that’s all I’m telling you._

“Les deux? D'où?” _Both? From where?_

“Pardonnez-moi de vous interrompre, mais je crois que je reconnais les noms de ces garçons.. Sont-ils Black noirs?” Fiona chimes in. _Forgive me for interrupting, but I believe I recognize those boys' names. Are they Black children?_

“Ils sont,” Mrs. Potter replies simply. _They are_.

“Puis il connaît le français,” Fiona sighs. _Then he knows French._

“Je suis au courant,” Mrs. Potter looks at Regulus, “Pas vrai, Regulus?” _I’m aware. Isn’t that right, Regulus?_

“Oui,” He answers. _Yes._

Mrs. Potter softly laughs before looking back to Léo, “Do you understand now?”

“No, wait, what am I supposed to understand?” He puzzles.

“I completely understand,” Fiona says, “I thought I recognized you, Regulus.”

Regulus looks back at her, slightly confused as to why she would know him. 

“I was a Carrow,” She tells him, “I know a little bit too much of the Black family. And because of that, we’re dropping the subject.”

“Thank you, Fiona,” Mrs. Potter says before turning back to what she was doing. 

“I’m so fucking lost,” Léo sighs.

“Watch your mouth!” Mrs. Potter scolds.

“I’m your brother, you’re not _allowed_ to tell me to watch my mouth,” Léo laughs, “My kids aren’t in the room.”

“But one of mine is,” She argues. Regulus suppresses a smile at being called her kid, which was unexpected but very appreciated. 

“He’s old enough, he’s fine,” He pauses a moment, “Wait, hold on, Regulus how old are you?”

“14,” He replies.

“Ok good, yeah he’s fine,” He maintains, “I can swear in front of Tim, and he’s 13, so I think everything is going to be ok, Effie.”

“But this is _my_ house, and watch your mouth,” She counters, “Anyway, what has been new with you guys?” 

Léo starts to talk about whatever has been going on with him, and Regulus works on putting back all the dishes he has out in the sink. He’s not going very fast, wanting to keep busy so he doesn’t have to go downstairs. 

Although, not even 3 minutes later, the people he was avoiding come up from downstairs. Regulus just keeps putting away the last of what’s left. 

“Mum Mum,” James calls, “We’re all done.”

“You’re _not_ done,” Mrs. Potter replies, “Do you want me to go check?”

“Yeah, you can go check,” James says proudly, “We’re done, I promise you.”

“Sirius, is he lying?” Mrs. Potter asks, and Sirius must have shaken his head because she continues, “Fine, I’m going to check.”

She walks off and heads downstairs, and James walks up behind Regulus.

“Hi Reg!” 

“Hi James,” Regulus replies, nervous that he’s running out of cups to put away. 

“What’re you doing?” James asks, leaning in over his shoulder to look at what he’s doing.

“Putting dishes away,” Regulus replies, feeling Sirius walk up on the other side of him.

“Reg,” Sirius says, and Regulus looks over at him, “Did you know James was French?”

Regulus shakes his head, “I found out when I heard them _speaking_ French.”

“I’m _sorry_ for not telling you! I forget!” James laughs, “Because I can’t speak French!”

“We’re aware,” Haydn deadpans, laughing. James elbows him. “You’re just mad you don’t speak French.”

“Not _all_ of our family speaks French,” James argues, “I’m normal.”

“No, that’s just not right,” Haydn elbows him back, “Du bist ein idiot.”

Regulus stifles a laugh at Haydn’s German content. 

“See, now that wasn’t even French! What does that mean?!” 

“You’re an idiot,” Regulus and Sirius reply in tandem, not even looking at one another.

“Oh sh- I’m no longer the only one with German knowledge,” Haydn jokingly sighs, “What language am I going to make fun of people in now?”

“Uh, I don’t know, English?” James playfully shoots back. Their banter is cut off by Mrs. Potter coming back up the stairs. Sirius, Haydn, and James all turn around.

“Fine, you’re done,” She sighs, “I’ll find something else for you to do later, but for now, go run off. Just don’t destroy anything.”

“Ok!” James happily chirps before leaning over to look at Regulus, “You should come join us when you’re done, ok?”

He’s not going to say no to James. “Alright.”

“Cool! Bye Reg!” James says before running off, dragging Haydn and Sirius behind him. Regulus, unfortunately, sets the last cup away on the shelf, looking over to Mrs. Potter in some hope that she has more to do so he doesn’t have to hang out with his brother or James’ cousins. 

“All done?” She asks, and Regulus nods, “Wonderful, thank you Regulus. I don’t have anything else I need help with, so you’re free to go if you’d like.”

He nods before walking off upstairs, shutting the door to his room behind him hoping that prevents people from just walking it.

It doesn’t.

The door opens almost immediately, Dianna walking in and pulling herself up onto his bed. Behind her follows Timothée, who just leans in the doorway.

“Hi!” She waves, “How are you?”

“I’m good,” Regulus answers, “How are you?”

“Good!” She pauses a moment, “How old are you?”

“I’m 14,” He says, “How old are you?”

I’m“ 5,” She holds up five fingers, “Is this your room?” 

“It is,” He nods, glancing over at Timothée in the doorway. He was kind of looking to be alone instead, but it doesn’t look like this is a matter of choice.

“It wasn’t before,” She crosses her arms, “This was my room.”

Regulus kind of just looks at her, not really knowing what to say to that. He’s sure this is the room she stayed in when she came to visit, but this is _his_ room now. Although, she doesn’t look like she would take well to that.

“When are you leaving?” She asks. Really hitting at all his insecurities here. Timothée does not seem to have any want to step in, looking rather amused at her questions. 

“Uh, never,” He hesitantly replies, “I live here.”

“No you don’t,” She shakes her head. He hears the door next door open, and someone walks down the hallway. God, he hopes they’re saving him.

“Tim, why are you just standing there?” Haydn asks.

“Watching Dianna as Mum told me to,” He replies, looking back to Dianna on the bed. 

“That’s not what watching her means,” He sighs, moving to brush past him and walk into the room, “Dianna, leave him alone.”

“Non!” She shakes her head, “Allez-vous en!” _No! Go away!_

“You’re being annoying,” He looks to Regulus, “I’m sorry.”

Regulus shrugs, hoping he’s successful in getting her out of here and getting Timothée to stop staring at him.

Of course, in walks James, “Hi Reg! What’s happening?”

“Dianna’s being a little-” Haydn tries to pull her off the bed, favoring that over finishing his sentence.

“Reg, why don’t you come hang with us?” James proposes, “Then you don’t have to hide in here.”

God, he wishes he could tell James there’s a reason he’s hiding in here. 

“Come on,” James walks over and grabs his hand, and Regulus just follows behind him into the other room. They leave Haydn to bargain with Dianna.

James breaks away to grab his own seat on the floor, around a particularly messy game of Exploding Snap. Good, Regulus’ least favorite game. He chooses a seat between James and Sirius, so at least he doesn’t have to sit next to anyone new. Sirius looks over at him.

“You got sucked in,” He laughs, “Sucks to suck.”

“Oh shut up,” Regulus rolls his eyes before looking up at the _3_ new people walking into the room. 

“Sorry James, they’re joining us so _I_ don’t get in trouble,” Haydn sighs, sitting next to James. The other two fill in the rest of the circle, and James grabs the cards and shuffles them.

“Alright, who am I dealing in?”


	20. Exploding Snap

After a painful half-hour of being forced to play Exploding Snap, Regulus is desperately looking for a way out. He’s around 3 seconds away from asking Sirius to leave, but he’s already fueled Sirius’ protective savior complex enough for one day. Maybe James? He wouldn’t get it, so he’s off the table. It’s looking bleak. 

“Your shuffling is shit, James,” Timothée holds his hand out, “Give.”

“Watch your mouth with Dianna,” Haydn warns, “And James’ shuffling is fine.”

“James’ shuffling _sucks_ ,” Timothée says again, “Have someone else do it for a couple of rounds. It doesn’t have to be me”

“I don’t want to, don’t make me,” Haydn denies when James looks at him. James then turns to Sirius and Regulus, where Regulus has slowly crept closer to Sirius. 

“Sirius? Reg?” James holds out the cards to them, “Either of you want to?”

“You know I’m just as bad at shuffling as you are,” Sirius laughs, looking over to Regulus, going to ask him but stopping before he does. “And Reg doesn’t either, just keep doing it, James.”

“You sure you don’t want to, Reg?” James offers again. Regulus shakes his head, he doesn’t even want to be here. “Fine, Tim, you can do it.”

“Thank you,” He snatches over the cards and tries to shuffle them, but only causes all the cards to fly everywhere.

“Ach du lieber Gott, Tim you’re an idiot,” Haydn sighs, picking up the cards off the ground. _Oh my god._

“Oh shut up Haydn, no one else wanted to shuffle them,” Timothée crosses his arms, “If you’re so mad do it yourself.”

“No, we’re just going to have James keep doing it,” Haydn hands the cards back to James.

“James’ shuffling sucks!” 

“So does yours,” Haydn shoots back, “At least James keeps them in his hand.”

“Let that quiet one do it-”

“Use names, Tim, don’t be rude,” Haydn chides.

“How am I supposed to know what his name is when he _hasn’t spoken_ ?” Timothée glances over to Regulus, staring at him a moment too long for Regulus’ taste. Nope, Regulus wants out, he is _very_ uncomfortable.

“Be nice to Reg,” James cuts in, “He’s literally just sitting there and playing with us, what the hell Tim?”

“I’m just saying,” Timothée counters annoyedly. 

“‘Just say’ again and you’ll be downstairs,” Haydn threatens.

“Just fucking deal James,” Timothée ignores the threat.

“Tim!” Haydn yells, “Not with Dianna!”

“What did Tim say?” Dianna pokes Haydn over and over.

Haydn sighs and shoots Timothée an aggressive look before turning back to Dianna, “A bad word, don’t repeat it, ok?”

“Repeat what?”

“Exactly,” He nods, “Go back to playing, don’t worry about it.”

She looks at him skeptically but listens, going back to playing with the same kind of animal toys Nymphadora loves. 

James looks between the two of them, “Are we good now?”

“As long as Tim keeps his mouth shut, yes we are,” Haydn says, James nodding and starting to shuffle the cards in his hand. Timothée mumbles something that Regulus can’t hear, but whatever it was it wasn’t nice because Haydn shoots him another look.

“Tim, what did I _just_ say?” Haydn scowls at him, “We have full rights to kick you out, you’re the youngest one here.”

“No way I am, he’s older than me?” Timothée points at Regulus, “How old are you?”

“14,” Regulus quietly replies. 

“Huh? I can’t hear you,” He dramatically replies, despite definitely being able to hear him.

“He’s 14,” Sirius replies for him, annoyance dripping from his voice.

“Why-”

“Get out, Tim,” Haydn points to the door, “You’re being obnoxious.”

“What the hell?” He crosses his arms, “I’m playing with you guys!”

“Not anymore,” Haydn mockingly laughs, “And take Dianna with you, she’s your responsibility.”

Timothée annoyedly huffs and gets up, “Dianna, come on, we’re going downstairs.”

“No, I’m playing up here,” She argues, “You can go.” Timothée looks at Haydn matter-a-factly.

“Fine, I’ll watch her, whatever, just go,” Haydn waves him off. Timothée walks out and half slams the door, audibly storming down the stairs and yelling something. 

“Uh oh, he’s telling,” James laughs, “So scared.”

“He’s such a 13-year-old boy,” Haydn rolls his eyes before looking sympathetically at Regulus, “I’m so sorry, he doesn’t understand the concept of other people.”

Regulus just shrugs. He gets that a lot, he’s well aware he’s quiet and he hears it far too often. Is it annoying? Absolutely. Does it just make him not want to speak more? Of course, but at least he’s used to it. 

James sighs, “Well, I guess I’ll-“

James is cut off by the door opening, Léo standing on the other side, “Why is your brother telling me you won’t let him play?”

“Because we kicked him out because he was being mean,” Haydn explains. 

“To who?”

“To Regulus,” Haydn points, “That’s why I _kicked him out_.”

“First of all, watch your tone, second, is that right?” He looks at Regulus. Regulus is sure he looks like a deer in headlights, he doesn’t want to ratt on anyone. James and Sirius both nod for him. 

“I’m taking your word for it,” Léo sighs, “I’ll probably be back.”

“Bye Dad,” Haydn waves, and Léo shuts the door behind him. Haydn looks back to Regulus, “I’m sorry that this is your first impression of our family.”

“It’s alright,” He says quietly, shrugging.

“Like I was saying,” James holds up the cards in his hand, “Should I redeal?”

“Go for it,” Haydn says, and James deals out cards to the four of them. Before they are able to start the round, the door opens again, Mrs. Potter standing in the doorway this time.

“What’s going on up here, dears?”

“We’re playing Exploding Snap,” James gestures, “Why?”

“I’m just wondering,” She looks at Regulus a moment before saying the best thing he’s heard all day, “Oh, and I need some help with something. Regulus, do you mind helping for a moment?”

He tries his hardest not to smile, “Sure.” He gets up and climbs over the game.

“Have fun Reg!” James waves, “We’ll miss you!” 

Regulus just smiles at him before walking out after Mrs. Potter, shutting the door behind him. He follows her down the stairs and into the kitchen, looking at her for instruction. 

“You looked really uncomfortable, I thought I would give you a moment to breath,” She says, “I’ll have to think of something to have you help with, but that’s less important.”

He smiles at her, “Thank you.”

“Of course, dear,” She looks around, “Hm, I really don’t have anything to do, but you’re welcome to just stay down here for a little while, maybe sit at the counter if you’d like.”

He nods before walking over to the stools and grabbing a seat with his back to the kitchen. He puts his head down on his arms, out of more tiredness than anything. He’s just happy he has a moment to cool off, even with the talking between Mrs. Potter and the two people in the living room filling the background. 

A couple of minutes later he feels a soft hand on his back, looking over to see Mrs. Potter taking a seat next to him. 

“Are you alright dear?” She asks.

“I’m fine,” He assures her, “Just tired, but I’m fine.”

“Good, you had your head down I just wanted to make sure,” She smiles, “Were the boys keeping you captive?”

He shakes his head, “I just felt weird getting up and leaving.”

“That’s fine, I understand that,” She nods, “Well, a small tip for tomorrow, most of the kids are not allowed in the piano room. It’s probably a good place to hide if you need it.”

Regulus gives her a small smile, “I’ll keep it in mind.”

“Oh, and if any of the other kids bother you, just let me know. The younger ones can be a bit insensitive,” She says.

He replies a little too quickly, “I kind of figured that out.”

“Oh lord, which one?”

“More than one,” He says slowly, not sure if he really should be telling on anyone. He’s kind of regretting mentioning that.

“So Tim _and_ Dianna have already given you a problem?” She sighs, “Of course they have, what happened dear?”

Regulus doesn’t say anything, now _really_ regretting saying something. It’s fine, he doesn’t really _belong_ here, he knows that.

“No, don’t feel bad for telling me,” She softly scolds, “It’s fine Regulus.”

He shakes his head, now dead set on not telling her anything. She just sighs before getting up.

“That’s alright, as long as you’re alright,” She rubs his back again, “Still, if anyone is giving you a hard time, just let me know.” 

He nods, hesitating before asking, “Can I go into the piano room?”

“Of course, you don’t have to ask me, dear,” She replies, and he gets up and heads into the piano room. He ignores the stares from the three in the living room, promptly shutting the door behind him. He finally feels like there aren’t a million eyes on him, letting out a sigh of relief before sitting down at the piano. 

It doesn’t matter what he’s playing, as long as it’s no longer Exploding Snap.

***

After 10 minutes go by, Sirius is pretty sure Regulus left with _no_ intention of coming back. He’s kind of happy for him because he could practically feel Regulus’ discomfort the entire time. And especially after that little 13 year old made fun of him for not talking. Bitch.

“Sirius, where the hell did Reg go?” James asks, collecting the cards. 

“He’s probably hiding,” Sirius says, “I could feel how much he didn’t want to be here from the second you brought him in.”

“Whoops,” James laughs, “Didn’t mean to do that.”

“It’s good for him, he needs to get used to it eventually.”

“Hate to break it to you, Sirius, but I don’t think he’s getting used to it,” James replies, “From what you’ve told me, he’s been _that_ quiet since he was like 5.”

Sirius sighs, “Maybe you have a point.”

“Not to barge into this conversation, but your brother seemed overly quiet,” Haydn chimes in, “He didn’t get any more comfortable the longer he was in here.”

“It took like 4 days for him to hold a genuine conversation with me,” James points out, “And it was only because I brought up the music he had in front of him.”

“Alright alright, let me have my false hope,” Sirius laughs, “I try to think that maybe one day he will open up.”

“I mean, he’s just introverted, there’s nothing really _wrong_ with that,” Haydn puts a hand up to his mouth, “I’m sorry, that sounded like scolding you.”

“You’re totally fine, don’t worry,” Sirius assures him.

“How the hell is he going to survive tomorrow?” James asks, “Haydn can tell you, the house is just going to be a ton of people.” Haydn nods in agreement.

“Great question James, I have no idea,” Sirius sighs.

“I mean, I know it’s not just this, but Tim is kind of an a-hole,” Haydn says, “Spoiled brat.”

“Woah, a little bit of lip there,” James laughs.

“I’m allowed to call him that, I live with him,” Haydn argues.

“That’s exactly what I’m saying James,” Sirius laughs, “When you tell me to _stop_ talking about Reg ‘behind his back’, no I will not, that’s just how it works.”

“Goddamn, I’ve done nothing,” James sits back, “This is an only child attack.”

“I didn’t even ask you, how has it felt going from an only child to not an only child?” Haydn asks, “Now you have to live with other people.”

“Well, I mean like, Sirius and I were kind of like brothers, and we stayed in the same room most of the time, so that transition wasn’t weird,” James pauses a moment, “And then Reg is another person I get to annoy, although I feel bad when I do it to him because he doesn’t do it back. All around positive experience, I don’t understand the problem.”

“Although, now you _do_ get to see how real siblings interact,” Sirius points out.

James nods, “Yeah yeah, there’s that. _That’s_ something I don’t get, how the hell do you argue and then are just fine the next day?”

“You’re oblivious James,” Haydn jokingly rolls his eyes, and James laughs and goes to deal out cards.

“Wait, don’t deal me in, I’ll be right back,” Sirius gets up, heading over to the door.

“Where’re you going?” James asks.

“I’m going to go make sure Reg isn’t dead,” Sirius opens the door, “I’ll be back.”

“Bye Sirius!” James yells as Sirius shuts the door behind him. Sirius heads downstairs, not immediately seeing Regulus. He decides to head around the corner into the piano room. Of course, there’s Regulus, playing God knows what.

When Sirius walks in, Regulus immediately turns around, “What’re you doing in here?”

“Coming to make sure you’re not dead,” Sirius walks over and sits on the bench next to Regulus, “How're you doing?”

“Fine,” Regulus replies, “Is that all?”

“You’re not kicking me out that fast,” Sirius leans on the piano keys, making a particularly crunchy chord.

“Stop that,” Regulus swats him away, “What do you want?”

“Well, we’ll start with the fact that I almost wanted to deck that kid,” Sirius scoffs, “Fucking asshole.”

Regulus just lets out a small laugh, and Sirius knows he agrees with him. 

“And secondly,” Sirius sighs, “Have you thought about tomorrow at all?”

“No,” He answers, “I don’t want to.”

“I know you don’t _want_ to, but we talked about this last week, it’s happening anyway.”

“I’m aware,” Regulus deadpans. 

Sirius mindlessly taps on the piano keys, “It’s a lot of fucking people.”

“I know,” Regulus hits his hand, “And don’t do that.”

Sirius puts his hand back at his side before continuing, “And then you meet all of them, and most of them are young, and they’ll want to like hug you and-”

“Stop,” Regulus shoots at him, and Sirius looks up to see his normal stone face a little shaken.

“Sorry,” Sirius apologizes, “I still think you’ll be fine, I certainly don’t mind if you hang out with me. But I have faith, Reg.”

Regulus doesn’t respond, although he doesn’t get much of a chance before someone knocks on the door.

“Come get dinner!” Mrs. Potter yells through the door. Sirius immediately gets up, looking over to Regulus, who looks a little less enthusiastic. He sighs and follows, the two of them heading off to where the dining table has now doubled in size. Once again, he can feel how uncomfortable Regulus is, partially in the closing distance between them.

This is certainly a new experience.


	21. Wrapped Up Safely

Dinner, for lack of a better term, has sucked. Regulus stuck himself between James and Sirius, although it didn’t help much. No one really is really speaking to him, but he feels like _everyone_ has been staring right at him. It is also way too loud considering the fact they only added 5 people. 

Sirius bumps him with his elbow before pointing at his plate with his fork, “Eat, Reg.”

Regulus pokes around his food a little bit, not really wanting to eat any of it.

“That’s not eating,” Sirius says to him. 

“Shut up,” Regulus whispers, “I’m not a baby.”

“That plate is also full,” Sirius points out.

“What are we whispering about?” James leans over, smiling.

“Nothing,” Regulus mumbles, but Sirius tells James anyway.

“Regulus won’t eat anything,” He says.

James frowns, “Oh, well that’s not good.”

“Wow, thanks captain obvious,” Sirius rolls his eyes, laughing. 

“Boys,” Mrs. Potter interrupts them, “I have a question for you three.”

“Oh no,” James says for the three of them.

“So, we need to move a couple of you around so we have enough rooms,” She starts, “I was thinking, Regulus, you sleep in James’ bed and James stays in the living room with the other two boys. Our options are a little limited, but I am still open to suggestions.”

“Why do _I_ get rehomed?”

“Because I think it would be cruel to have Sirius or Regulus sleep in the living room with people they barely know,” Mrs. Potter replies. 

“Ok ok, fair, but why can’t me and Sirius share a bed?”

“I never said you couldn’t,” Mrs. Potter shrugs, “Would you three like to share a room?”

James and Sirius nod pretty enthusiastically, Regulus kind of just looking between them. At least he doesn’t have to stay with people he doesn’t know.

“Regulus, is that alright,” Mrs. Potter asks him. He nods, what’s he going to say? No? “Alright, Haydn and Timothée, you two can split the living room up however you’d like. The three of them are going to squeeze into Sirius and James’ room.”

“Sorry, Haydn,” James looks over to Haydn, who playfully acts offended. 

“See, Effie, it’s not that tight of a fit,” Léo bumps Mrs. Potter, who rolls her eyes. 

“Where is Dianna going?” James asks. 

“Aunt Fiona and I are staying with her like normal,” Léo tells him, “She’s young, she’ll be fine without the cot in there.”

“I want my own room,” Dianna chimes in.

“You never have your own room,” Haydn reminds her, “You always share with Mum and Dad, Dianna.”

“No, I do,” She shakes her head, “The guest room.”

“You normally have your own _bed_ ,” Léo corrects her, “But now the guest room is Regulus’ room, so there’s only one bed.”

“No, it isn’t,” She denies. 

James laughs, “I like how kids just deny things.”

“Dianna is the queen of ‘No, that’s not right’ to things that are very right,” Haydn says.

“I’m not even going to try to fight that battle,” Léo laughs, “Maybe when we’re done with dinner.”

Everyone goes back to the conversation they were previously having, Regulus going back to pushing around the food on his plate. He ignores the stares from Sirius the entire time, just waiting until they’re finally excused. 

He does not know how he’s going to sleep in a room with the two of them.

***

Regulus wakes up shaking, from a nightmare he _knew_ he was going to have. He takes a moment to remember where the hell he is because this isn’t his normal room. He goes to get up and head downstairs, but he realizes he _cannot_ do that. Not only will Sirius definitely hear him clumsily open the door, but there are also people in the living room. They’ll hear him, and that’s way too much.

The realization sets in that he’s trapped, he can’t go anywhere. He panics because he _hates_ feeling trapped. There’s definitely something he can do, but he’s certainly not thinking of it. He freezes as if it’ll help. It’s not.

He reaches around for his wand, so at least he doesn’t feel defenseless. After knocking something off the nightstand and scaring himself half to death, he realizes it’s in his room. Perfect.

Of course, what he dropped woke Sirius up. Sirius gets up and carefully walks over to him, “Hey Reg?”

Regulus just shakes his head, wanting Sirius to go back to sleep.

“Nope, can I come sit?” Sirius asks, sitting anyway before Regulus can say anything, “Are you ok?”

Regulus nods, which is entirely a lie.

“No, you’re not,” Sirius sighs, pulling himself completely onto the bed, “Nightmare?”

Regulus nods, his breath hitching as he goes to say something.

“Shit, Reg,” Sirius gestures for him to come closer, and surprisingly Regulus listens. He pulls him into a tight hug, the kind Regulus will only let him do. He hates Sirius sometimes, but he trusts him. 

“Do you want to talk about it?” He softly asks, not letting go.

“No,” Regulus whispers back. He’d rather not relive everything that just happened.

“That’s fine,” Sirius nods, sitting there for a little bit longer before asking, “Can we at least lay down?”

Regulus sits back, “No, go back to bed.”

“Come on, don’t shut me out now,” Sirius sighs, “Let me help you.”

“No,” Regulus backs up, “Go to sleep.”

“No,” Sirius shakes his head, “I’m awake now, I’m staying with you until _you_ go back to sleep.”

“And I’m not, so go back to bed,” Regulus maintains.

“What’re you doing to do? Just sit here?” Sirius asks, with an oddly low amount of annoyance in his voice. 

Regulus hesitates because Sirius kind of has a point. What _is_ he going to do? He won’t go downstairs, he doesn’t have any of his stuff. Damn Sirius for thinking of that.

“Exactly,” Sirius glances over to James, “He won’t miss me, so I’m staying here with you.”

Regulus knows he’s not going to give it up, so he just sits there. The adrenaline from shooting awake starts to wear off, and he feels like he’s going to fall back asleep. Only if he wasn’t terrified of that, because he knows that’s not a good idea.

“Can you at least give me another hug?” Sirius asks hopefully. Regulus rolls his eyes but moves back forward, Sirius drawing him in. Sirius begins to slowly rock back and forth, and goddamn it’s lulling him to sleep. But he _refuses_ to fall asleep, leaning against Sirius, wrapped safely in his arms. 

But a little rest won’t hurt.

***

James wakes up, notably without anyone laying on top of him like the night before. He sits up a little bit, sleepily looking around for where the hell Sirius went. He looks over at Sirius’ bed, which is temporarily Regulus’ to see the two of them laying down, their heads at the foot of the bed, Sirius holding onto his brother. They’re laying on a pillow, somehow, and have a blanket over them, somehow.

James is a little offended since Regulus wouldn’t let _him_ hug him. But, he figures that comes with time.

Almost on cue, his mother cracks open the door, peeking in and softly laughing at Sirius and Regulus. She gestures for James to come with her, and he begrudgingly complies. He shuts the door as quietly as possible because Sirius will wake up at anything. He follows her down the stairs, seeing his Aunt, Uncle, and father eating at the table. 

“Oh, good morning James!” Uncle Léo smiles back at him.

“Good morning everyone!” He waves, grabbing a seat next to his Uncle Léo. 

“So James, have you properly prepared Regulus and Sirius for who is coming over today?” His dad asks, “Do they know what they’re getting into?”

“I’ve told them quite a bit, but they’ll never be ready,” James laughs.

“I’m going to give you a small bit of insider information,” Aunt Fiona chimes in, “The type of family gatherings those boys have been to are _very_ formal.”

“Sirius has told me about it, but not much,” James says, “I just know they sucked.”

“They were horrible,” She groans, “You, first of all, had to be _all_ dressed up, you don’t speak unless you’re spoken to by someone older than you are, and when you eat, you eat in almost dead silence if it’s more than just your family.”

“Silence?! You can’t talk?!”

“James would be dead in a minute,” Aunt Fiona laughs.

“I would be!” He laughs, “No way I’m going to be quiet, there’s just no reason for that.”

“Anyway, James, what I brought you down here for,” His mum takes a seat across from him, “It’s your job to make sure Sirius and Regulus meet everyone and are comfortable with them, ok?” 

“I mean, I can introduce them, but they’re their own people, mum,” He replies.

“I’m not saying you have to micromanage them, but they don’t know anyone,” She sighs, “I just don’t want what I heard happened yesterday to happen again, and I’m putting that at least partially on you.”

“Ugh, fine,” He rolls his eyes, “I think they’ll be fine.”

“I’m sure they will be,” His mother smiles before looking above his head, and James turns around to see Sirius coming down the stairs. 

“Good morning,” Sirius smiles, walking over to wrap his arms around James’ neck from the back, “Regulus wants to know if we’re eating breakfast at the table.”

“You can assure him we’re not,” James’ mother softly laughs, “I thought I’d spare him that this morning.”

“Ok cool, thank you,” He leans over to look at James, “Did you hear us last night?”

“Nope,” James shakes his head, “I woke up wondering where you went.”

Sirius laughs, “See, I told Reg you wouldn’t miss me.”

“I missed you,” James whines.

“Only once you realized,” Sirius jokingly rolls his eyes. Uncle Léo looks over towards the living room, although he’s not looking at where Haydn is sitting.

“Which one of you is at the piano?” Uncle Léo yells.

“Tim,” Haydn answers from the living room. 

“Timothée! You know not to touch that!” Uncle Léo scolds. 

Timothée walks around the corner, “I’m not doing anything bad, I’m just playing it.”

“Can you play the piano?” Uncle Léo asks sharply.

“I mean, I _can_ ,” Timothée crosses his arms.

Uncle Léo sighs, “Don’t give me attitude, just stay out of that room, listen to what Aunt Effie told you.”

“Fine,” He rolls his eyes, turning around to walk off elsewhere.

More footsteps down the stairs and James leans around Sirius to see Regulus walking down the stairs.

“I told you I was going to come back up,” Sirius says as Regulus walks up beside him.

“I was done waiting,” He shrugs before looking to James’ mother, not even having to ask. 

“No, you’re free from breakfast at the table this morning,” She smiles.

He nods, “Thank you.” He walks off towards what James is sure is the piano room. 

“Where’re you going?” Sirius asks, and Regulus doesn’t even turn around when he answers.

“Guess.”

Sirius huffs but doesn’t say anything. 

“Hey-” Timothée turns around, “Why does he get to go in there?”

“He plays piano, Tim,” James answers, “Why do you think it’s uncovered?”

Timothée turns back to look at the door, “He shut the door, damn, I wanted to hear.”

“Just trust it’s amazing,” James says, “Like crazy good, I have no idea how someone even _gets_ that good.”

Sirius scoffs, “Oh, I do.” 

Aunt Fiona laughs, but his mother just sighs. “Sirius,” His mother half warns.

“Sirius, for the record, I found that funny,” Aunt Fiona chimes in, “As someone who lived that.”

Sirius looks at her skeptically, “Huh?”

“Oh, I told your brother and not you,” She laughs, “I was a Carrow before I got married, a similar structure to the Black family.”

“No kidding,” He marvels, “Small world!”

“You’re a _lot_ bigger than I remember you being,” She smiles, “I remember you when you were like a toddler.”

“Woah woah, you _remember_ me?”

She nods, “Of course! I left in, what, ‘63? I grew up with Bellatrix, and I remember when all of you were born. I specifically remember finding out your mother was pregnant with you, I could not believe God gave her kids.”

“Neither can I, and I’m one of them,” Sirius laughs. 

“I’m glad you two are bonding,” James’ mother softly laughs, “Over something questionable, yes, but that’s alright.”

“It’s not that bad, Euphemia,” Aunt Fiona assures her, “It’s just a shared experience between family escapees.”

“Andy said she prefers fugitive,” Sirius laughs. 

“That sounds like her,” Aunt Fiona says before turning her attention off to the side. James and Sirius look to where she is, seeing Regulus standing rather timidly. 

“Hey Reg,” Sirius greets, “What’d you need?”

“Can you-uh, can you come listen to this for a second?” He asks, seemingly gearing up for a hard no. 

“Sure, yeah,” Sirius nods, walking off away from James.

“Wait, can I come?” James asks, standing up. 

Regulus shrugs, and James takes that as a yes. He heads over and follows them into the piano room. Before he can shut the door, someone’s hand comes in. 

Timothée pushes open the door, “Wait wait, I want to hear.”

“Tim!” Haydn yells, “Cut it out!”

“I’m just asking!” He yells back, “I just want to know if James is lying.”

James glances over to a nervous Regulus before deciding he can’t stay in here and hear right now. “Not right now, go and annoy Haydn or something.”

Timothée smirks, “So you’re lying?” 

“Tim-”

“He can listen,” Regulus cuts in, much to both of their surprises, “I’ll play something I know.”

“Play uhh, play that one- I don’t know the name,” James struggles to find the name. Before he can put his finger on it, Haydn leans in the doorway. 

“Do I need to drag Tim out?” Haydn asks, looking around at the three of them. 

“No, Reg said he’s allowed to listen,” James says. 

“Oh, chill,” Haydn looks at Regulus, “Is it cool if I listen for a minute then? I’m not going to lie, I’m kind of interested.”

Regulus shrugs and takes a seat at the piano, James turns to Haydn and whispers, “That means yes in Regulus language.” Haydn softly laughs and leans in the doorway to listen. 

“James,” Regulus turns to look at him, “What piece did you want?”

“Oh oh,” James remembers, “It was the first one I’ve ever heard you play, that one you play all the time.”

“Oh,” He nods, pointing behind James, “Can you get me that blue book?”

James turns around, seeing a blue book in the box Regulus is pointing to and grabbing it. He hands it to him and Regulus nods as thanks before swapping the book on the piano for that one. 

He flips to the piece James is talking about before starting. It’s _mesmerizing_ like Regulus’ playing always is. Soft but calculated, and if James could read music he’s sure Regulus wouldn’t miss a beat. 

He places his hands on his knees when he finishes, not turning around until James says something. 

“Yeah, Reg, that one,” James laughs, and Regulus smiles back at him. 

“Holy shit, you weren’t lying James,” Timothée marvels, “That was really good.”

“Yeah, that was amazing,” Haydn comments. 

“Thank you,” Regulus turns to say to them before grabbing the book he was going to play from originally. He looks to Sirius, telepathically communicating something because Sirius immediately turns to Timothée and Haydn. 

“Ok, not to kick you out, but bye,” Sirius half-jokes, waving to the two boys. Haydn pulls Timothée with him. 

“Bye, have fun!” Haydn says before shutting the door.

Sirius urges Regulus over and looks at the book on the piano, “Ok Reg, what’re you working on?”

James grabs a seat on the ground next to them, ready to not understand a word of what’s about to happen. 


	22. Nice to Meet You

“Come here, boys!” Léo yells, “All of you!”

James is the first out of the piano room door, Sirius standing up but waiting for Regulus. Regulus takes a deep breath before standing and following after him, making sure to keep his safe spot behind Sirius. They stand at the back of the group against the wall, watching the door open to reveal three people, two of them look around Mrs. Potter’s age. The last looks much older, so Regulus pretty safely assumes that’s James’ grandmother. 

The three make their rounds, greeting everyone else before someone walks over to Sirius and Regulus.

“Hello,” The woman smiles, “You must be the boys Effie told me about.”

“We are,” Sirius politely replies, “I’m Sirius, and this is my brother Regulus.”

“Well hello Sirius, hello Regulus, I’m Esmé, Euphemia’s sister,” She waves, looking back as someone puts their hand on her shoulder, “Oh, and this is my husband Sean.”

He holds his hand out to Sirius, “Nice to meet you.” 

Sirius shakes his hand, “I’m Sirius, nice to meet you.” Sirius glances back to Regulus before pointing back, “This is Regulus.”

Regulus shakes Sean’s outstretched hand, giving him a small nod as a greeting. His handshake is _very_ firm, which, at least, is better than a hug.

Sean is drawn away by Mr. Potter, and in his place comes a short old woman.

“Bonjours mes chéris! Hello dears!” She happily greets, her French accent much stronger than anyone else they’ve met. 

She reaches out and pinches Sirius’ cheek, causing Sirius to violently flinch backward. If there wasn’t a wall behind him, he probably would have stumbled backward. Regulus’ mindlessly grabs onto his arm, hoping whatever she just did she _doesn’t_ do that to him. Why the hell did this random woman just do that for? That’s something their mother did when they weren’t listening, but he’s pretty sure they were paying attention. James must’ve caught sight of the situation because he swiftly walks over to help.

“Sirius?” He cautiously says, but Sirius has his eyes locked down. James starts to pull him off to the side, “Come on.”

Regulus lets go of him as he walks off, watching James sit him down in the living room and talk to him. Regulus doesn’t draw his attention away from his brother until Mrs. Potter calls his name.

“Regulus,” She says, and he looks over, “What happened, dear?”

He opens his mouth but fails to say anything. He can’t form the words to tell her what just happened, because his perception of it is much different, so he just shakes his head. 

“I believe I scared him, c'était un accident,” The older woman turns back to Mrs. Potter. _It was an accident_. 

“Tout va bien, maman,” Mrs. Potter assures her, “Well, you can meet Regulus.” _It’s alright, mum._

She smiles at him, “Ravi de vous rencontrer, Regulus.” _Nice to meet you, Regulus_.

“Ravi de vous rencontrer aussi, madame,” He timidly answers. _Nice to meet you too, ma’am._

“Oh mon Dieu, he speaks French!” She looks back at Mrs. Potter, “About time you had one that does.” _Oh my goodness._

She softly laughs, “If I could have taught James it, I would have, maman.” 

“Tu aurais dû essayer plus fort,” She jokingly replies. _You should have tried harder_. 

“Anyway,” Mrs. Potter looks at Regulus, “Have you met Esmé and Sean, dear?” 

Regulus nods, sparing another glance in James and Sirius’ direction. It looks like they’re laughing, which is good.

“Wonderful, you don’t have to stay out here if you don’t want to,” She says, “Most of my family won’t be here until later, I’ll call you out when they come.”

He nods, “Thank you.”

She smiles back and he walks off, hearing the murmuring about him as he does. He decides he at least kind of cares about Sirius, walking around the couch to get a look at him. 

Sirius looks up at him, smiling like nothing happened, “Hey Reg!”

Regulus raises an eyebrow but doesn’t say anything. Sirius is acting like whatever just happened didn’t scare him.

“Where are you going?” Sirius asks, and Regulus gives him a ‘You know where’ stare, “Ok, shut up, don’t call me stupid, can I come with you? I’ll be quiet.” 

“As long as you’re quiet,” Regulus says before walking back off into the piano room, Sirius in tow. James doesn’t follow them, so Sirius shuts the door behind him. 

Regulus grabs a seat at the piano, and Sirius pulls out something he was sketching the last time they were in here. They don’t acknowledge anything that happened, they don’t even look at one another. 

Good, Regulus needs to save up the energy for everyone else he has to meet today.

***

A knock on the door drags both of them out of what they’re doing, Mrs. Potter sticking her head in, “Hello dears, come out and say hello.”

“We’ll be out in a minute,” Sirius replies, starting to set his stuff off to the side. Mrs. Potter nods and walks out, not shutting the door. Sirius walks over to Regulus, offering him a hand. 

“Do I have to?” Regulus asks as if Sirius can do anything about this.

“It’ll be fine, it’s just James’ family,” Sirius assures him. Regulus sighs but gets up, not taking Sirius’ hand. 

They walk out into the loud other room, Regulus willing himself to not grab onto Sirius, he’s not 5 anymore. They round the corner to see everyone milling about, greeting the few new additions to the group with hugs and kisses. The air is a mess of English and French, none of which Regulus can decipher. 

James walks over, leading someone behind him, “Uncle Lucien, this is Sirius and Regulus.”

“Which one is which?” He laughs, “Wait, let me guess,” He points to Sirius, “Sirius,” He points to Regulus, “Regulus.”

“Ding ding ding!” James cheers, “That’s right, you’ve nailed it.”

“If I can accurately identify Percy’s triplets, I think I can do anything,” He jokes before turning to Sirius and Regulus, “Anyway, hello boys, I’m Lucien. It’s nice to meet you both, I’ve heard a little from Effie, but it’s nice to know she didn’t hallucinate two more sons.”

“It’s nice to meet you too,” Sirius smiles back.

“You should probably also meet my daughters, we’ll do this one at a time” He turns back, “Emmy, venez ici, stop annoying mémé and come say hello.”

“I’m not annoying her,” The little girl giggles walking over to her father but tripping on the way over. 

“Oh- are you ok?” He asks walking over to help her up.

“Yeah! I like it down here,” She says, sitting up to sit on the floor. She looks up at Sirius and Regulus, “Hi!” 

“Hi,” Sirius waves.

“Introduce yourself, Emmy,” Lucien tells her.

“Oh yeah,” She nods, “Je m'appelle Embla, quel est votre nom?” _My name is Embla, what is your name?_

“In English,” He sighs, but Sirius just laughs.

“It’s fine,” He assures him before looking to the little girl, “Je suis Sirius, et voici Regulus.” _I’m Sirius, and this is Regulus_.

“Holy- Effie!” Lucien turns around, “Finally have kids that speak our language?”

“Oh hush, Lucien,” Mrs. Potter rolls her eyes as she walks over, “Maman said the same thing.”

“Of course she did, she’s still upset about you not teaching James it.”

Another little girl walks up, lifting Lucien’s arm to walk under it, smiling at Sirius and Regulus. She walks up and gives Regulus a surprise hug, which he _does not_ appreciate, then giving Sirius one, which he looks like he greatly appreciates. Regulus takes that as a cue to start to drift further behind Sirius. 

“Dorita, you don’t just hug people,” Lucien sighs, “Say hello first.”

“Hello,” She waves, moving back to lean against her father.

“Hi,” Sirius waves back, “I’m Sirius, and this is Regulus. It’s nice to meet you.”

“Have you met Alanna?” She asks, and Sirius shakes his head, “I’ll get her.”

She runs off, dragging back with her another girl, who looks a little older than she is. This girl seems annoyed until she looks up at Sirius, and it’s then she stops scolding her. She smiles at him.

“Hi,” She says, rather timidly, “I’m Alanna.”

“I’m Sirius, and this is Regulus,” Sirius rattles off his usual introduction. 

“Nice to meet you, Sirius,” She says, seemingly _nervous_?

Regulus looks over to James and Haydn, who are currently busting a gut laughing. James, gestures for Regulus to join them, Regulus slipping away from Sirius to stand over by James.

“What?” He asks, confused as to what is so funny.

“Look at Alanna,” James points, “She totally has just established a crush on your brother, she is _not_ that timid.”

Regulus stifles a laugh, looking at a clearly infatuated Alanna. Sirius shoots confused glances in their direction. Every time he does, James laughs harder.

“You’re going to laugh yourself to death, James,” Haydn elbows him, “Laughing at the misfortune of your best friend? That’s just mean.”

“No, it’s hilarious,” James shakes his head, “Should we save him?”

“No,” Regulus replies without hesitation, “He used his pass.”

James laughs, “He used his- Reg, you’re ruthless, I love it.”

Regulus just shrugs, a small smile spreading on his face. He doesn’t understand why everything is so funny to James, but that in itself is kind of funny.

“Ok, she’s a little close,” Haydn pushes James out of the way, “Oi! Sirius!” 

Sirius looks over, and Haydn gestures for him to walk over and join them.

“I’m glad you’re having a fucking good time,” He quietly says to James, who is _still_ laughing.

“Shh shh,” James says through laughs, “Mum’ll kill you.”

“Not if she can’t hear me,” Sirius smiles, turning as the door opens again. 

The room fills with screaming children, the door shutting promptly behind whoever walked in.

“Can’t control you kids, Percy?” Léo laughs, although the man who just walked in with two crying children hanging on him looks less than amused. 

“Andr-Francis, go see James,” He says, looking down at one of thee identical kids. The one that is presumably Francis, the only one not crying, runs off to James. James squats down to give him a piggyback ride. Francis happily wraps his arms around James.

“Hi Francis!” He chirps.

“Hi James!” Francis cheerfully replies, his French accent stronger than the other kids Regulus has met.

“You get to meet my friends,” James says, turning so he and Francis are facing Regulus and Sirius, “That is Regulus, and that is Sirius.”

“Sirius, Regulus,” Francis repeats, “Hi!” 

“Hello,” Sirius smiles, waving at him. Behind James and Francis walks up someone who looks like Francis’ mother, a girl tucked at her side.

“Hi James,” She greets, James turning around to smile up at her, “How are you doing?” 

“I’m good! I’d give you a hug but, well, yeah,” He laughs, “Oh! You have to meet Sirius and Reg.”

“I’m assuming those are the boys your mother has cryptically written about?”

“Sounds right,” He turns back, “Well, the taller one is Sirius, and that’s Regulus.” 

“It’s nice to meet you both, I’m Diane,” She smiles, looking down to the girl next to her, “Say hello, Sylvia.”

“Hi,” She quietly says, giving them nothing more than a small wave. 

Diane sighs, smiling, “This is Sylvia.”

“Where is Percy?” James asks.

“Battling Simon and Andrien, probably,” She sighs, looking around. While she searches for her husband, a little kid comes running out from under everyone, grabbing onto Regulus of all people. He immediately stiffens, looking down at a carbon copy of the boy on James’ back.

“Andrien, arrête ça, viens ici,” Diane demands. _Andrien, stop that, come here._

He shakes his head, gripping onto a _very_ uncomfortable Regulus. Haydn steps forward to grab him away, pulling him back to stand by him instead. The sound of the crying kid brings over Percy, who is holding a third boy. 

“Can you go calm him down?” He tiredly asks.

“Yeah, stay with Sylvia,” Diane says, walking over to grab Andrien, “Alright alright, we’re going.”

She walks off away from them, off towards Mrs. Potter and Esmé in the kitchen. Percy walks past James and holds his hand out, “Sorry, this introduction is unfortunate. I’m Perceval, although, it’s alright if you call me Percy. And this is Simon.”

“Nice to meet you,” Sirius says, and Regulus gives him a small head nod when he shakes his hand. Percy then walks off to greet Timothée and Dianna, who just came up from downstairs. Haydn walks over to stand next to Sylvia, who grabs onto his hand. 

“Forward, go forward,” Francis pushes James’ head, and James walks forward so he’s standing right in front of Sirius and Regulus. Francis does the one thing Regulus really didn’t want to happen and reaches over to poke his cheek. 

“Why did you do that?” James asks, looking up at him. 

Francis doesn’t answer, instead squishing Regulus’ face between his hands. Why the _hell_ is he doing this?

“No no, you don’t do that,” James steps back, “You don’t just touch people’s faces, Francis, that’s weird.”

“Why?” He asks, “I can do it to you!” He then proceeds to do what he did to Regulus to James. 

“Because I know you, although you shouldn’t- owow, stop,” James manages to duck away from his hands. Before Francis can complain, the door opens _again_ . This time, the two people who walk in look _much_ more like what Regulus is used to, although the kind of outfits they’re wearing are more suited for just being around the house. The family gathering dress is much more formal. 

“Lionel! Welcome,” Mrs. Potter smiles, walking over to give him a short hug. She does the same to the girl standing next to him, whose eye catches on Regulus and Sirius for a scarily long moment. Regulus swears he recognizes her, but he just can’t place it. 

“We can’t stay for long, but we thought we’d come for a little while,” Lionel answers.

“That’s fine, I’m glad you decided to join us,” She nods, “Come, meet the boys I’ve brought in.”

She walks them over to where Sirius and Regulus are standing, Sirius redirecting his attention from James trying to grapple with Francis on top of him to the people walking over. 

Lionel extends a hand, “Lionel.”

“Sirius,” Sirius shakes his hand, and Lionel extends the same hand to Regulus.

“Regulus,” He says at the most normal volume he can muster, taking his hand to shake it. This man seems a lot like people Regulus has met before, and if he’s learned anything it’s that you speak when spoken to. And you don’t say _anything_ that could sound remotely like a whisper. 

Behind him walks up the girl who walked in with him. She looks around Narcissa’s age, and painfully familiar. She also holds out a hand to Sirius first. 

“Hello, I’m Lethia,” She smiles, shaking both Sirius’ and Regulus’ hands before stepping back.

“I’m Sirius, and this is Regulus,” He gestures behind him. 

She looks at them confused for a moment, “Why do I recognize you both?” 

Sirius shrugs, “I’m not sure.” 

“They’re Narcissa’s cousins, I believe, Lethia,” Lionel says to her, and she nods in realization. 

“Oh, yes yes, they are,” She softly laughs, “That’s why I recognize your names, I’ve heard about you before. Probably met you too, if I remembered.”

“It all blends together,” Sirius laughs. 

“Hey! Look who’s here!” Léo calls from the living room, where the other half of the family not in the kitchen has moved. 

Lionel and Lethia walk off to go greet them, leaving just Sirius, Regulus, Haydn, and Sylvia standing around one another. James ran off with Francis at some point, and he has no idea where he went. 

After all of that, Regulus feels like there are spiders crawling all over him. He _hates_ being touched, and kids have hands that seem to be eternally sticky and gross. Not to mention all the people he just had to meet, who stared at him confused from across the room. He desperately needs a break, so he doesn’t say anything when he breaks away from Sirius to head off to the piano room. Mrs. Potter told him that’s a good place to hide, and he’s going to take advantage of it. 

He shuts the door behind him, trying to shake off the feeling of everything that just happened enough to focus on something else. After a minute of shaking out his hands and focusing on nothing but silence, he no longer feels like he’s going to combust at any minute. He turns to the piano and plays whatever he has in front of him. 

He’s not going to survive an entire evening of this.


	23. Candyland

Two minutes. Regulus gets two minutes alone until the door opens again. He turns around to see Sylvia, looking at him in almost shock for a moment. 

“Can I-uh, can I come in?” She asks. Regulus nods and moves over, inviting her to sit on the bench. She shuts the door, thankfully, and walks over to sit next to him. “Do you know how to play?” She asks him. 

“I do,” He affirms, “Do you?”

She nods and smiles proudly.

“Can I hear?” He asks, interested in hearing her play.

“Uhh,” She fiddles with her hands, “I’m not that good, but I can try.”

“That’s fine, do you need music?” He points back at the plethora of piano books behind him.

She gets up and grabs one, handing it to him, “Number 13.”

He nods and takes the book he’s working on off, replacing it with hers. He flips to Number 13, it’s in a book he doesn’t recognize but it’s an excerpt he vaguely remembers. It’s nothing big-name, considering she doesn’t even look 10 it makes sense.

She plays through the piece relatively well, considering he had no idea how well she played. She looks up at him when she finishes, clearly nervous about what he’s going to say.

“That was really good,” He compliments her.

“Can I hear you play something?” She asks, “It’s ok if you don’t want to.”

“No, it’s fine,” He looks back, getting up to grab the blue book he played out of for Timothée and Haydn. He hands it to her, “You can pick anything in that book.”

“Anything? You know all of it?” She asks in disbelief, and he nods. He doesn’t see it as surprising, that’s expected when he works on something. He has to learn the whole thing, that’s how practicing was always taught to him. She picks one and hands it back to him, and he looks over it before setting it on the stand. 

He plays through it pretty easily, considering he’s known it for a while. When he finishes he looks over to see her starstruck face, absolutely fascinated.

“Wow,” She marvels, “You’re so good.”

“Thank you,” He gives her a small smile.

“Can you teach me that?” She asks, and he contemplates it a moment. He probably could, if he tried hard enough and she was cooperative enough, but this piece is kind of hard. Maybe a little too complicated for her.

“Maybe not this one, but,” He takes that book off and gets up to grab another he’s familiar with, walking back at setting it on the stand, “We could do one of these.”

“Ok,” She nods, seemingly unfazed by the change in direction. He hands it to her, and she picks out one she likes. He plays through it once, making sure _he_ knows what he’s doing before he attempts to help her learn it. He’s not really a teacher, but he’s breaking a lot of boundaries today. He’ll make this one of them. 

They get about 5 minutes of peace, softly teaching her what he can before the door creaks open. In walks one of the three boys, he has no idea which one, and they climb right up between them. The first thing he does is slam his hands on the keys, and Sylvia hits them away.

“No Andrien,” She scolds. “You can’t touch this.”

He crosses his arms and pouts, “Yes I can!”

“No, it’s not for you,” She shakes her head, which just makes him hit them more. She gets up and pulls him up off the bench and points out the door, “You’re not allowed in here.”

“Tu es méchant avec moi! I’m telling!” He yells before running out of the room. _You’re being mean to me!_

She doesn’t even acknowledge it, turning back and playing what he was working on with her. She only does it a couple of more times before someone _else_ walks in, a crying Andrien next to them.

“Sylvia, what did you do to your brother?” Diane asks.

“I didn’t do anything,” She shakes her head defiantly, “He was touching the piano.” 

“I want to help!” He stamps his feet on the ground, “Je veux aider!” _I want to help_. 

“You don’t know how to play, sweetie,” Diane, rubs his head. He doesn’t care, apparently, continuing to throw his tantrum. “Ok, I’m sorry, no more piano Sylvia.”

“Why?” She whines, “I’m playing it.”

“I know and I’m sorry, but it’s causing more of a problem than it’s solving.”

Sylvia groans but gets up and walks out, heading in the direction of the stairs to downstairs. Diane looks at Regulus a moment before sighing. 

“I feel horrible asking you this, but can you come out of the piano room for a little while?” She sighs again, “I just need to lock it so no one gets in here, but, just, yeah. I’m so sorry you’re getting sucked into this.”

“It’s alright,” He nods, getting up from the bench.

“Thank you so much,” She smiles. “The boys are downstairs if you want to hang out by them.”

He nods, walking by her and heading downstairs. It’s not really _that_ ok, he was hoping to hide the whole time, but he understands where she’s coming from. 

Downstairs is _much_ louder than he expected it to be, which makes sense since almost every kid is down here. It’s also a mess, and the three older kids are doing nothing about it. They spot him almost immediately as he walks in.

“Reg!” James calls from the corner, “Come join us!”

Regulus walks over and takes a seat next to Sirius.

“Did you get kicked out?” Haydn asks, and Regulus nods. “Makes sense, they normally lock that room even though Sylvia can play. The kids walk in and slam their disgusting hands all over it.”

James laughs, “The violence, Haydn, wow.”

Dianna runs over to them, cutting off their conversation, and looks at all 4 of them. She doesn’t get to say anything before Embla walks up behind her. 

She walks up to Regulus, “Come play with us.”

Regulus lets the demand sink in for a moment before hesitantly nodding, “Alright.”

“Sorry Reg,” James says, “You’re liked by children, I guess.” 

Regulus just rolls his eyes at him before getting up, letting Embla drag him over. He sits him down in front of a game of Candyland, the two of them taking seats on other sides of the board. Embla hands him a yellow piece. 

She points at the bottom of the board, “Start there, put him there.”

He listens, putting the one in his hand down at the bottom of the board. Dianna does the same, but Embla doesn’t yet. 

“So you play like this,” She says, “You pick a color, like this, and go to it. Oui?” She looks up at Regulus. 

He nods, not having an idea of what she said and just being happy he's played this game before. 

Embla sets her piece at the beginning and they start to play, taking turns drawing cards and moving to that space. Embla makes up rules occasionally, like that she can go off the path or pick up two cards. He’s able to ease a couple of arguments between her and Dianna over the added rules to this very simple game, which is good.

All is fine until one of the triplets walks up, Regulus guessing it’s Andrien. Although, he has low confidence in that guess.

“Je joue aussi,” He says, reaching out and grabbing Embla’s piece off the board, “I’m green.” _I play too._

“No! That’s mine!” She yells at him, reaching over to take it away. 

“ _I’m_ vert!” He shakes his head, not letting her have the piece. _Green_. 

Regulus decides he might as well take a shot at fixing this, but he doesn’t know which kid that is.

He leans over and looks at him, “You can play when we’re finished, give that back to her for now.”

“Je veux jouer maintenant,” He shakes his head again. _I want to play now_. 

“Vous pouvez jouer bientôt,” Regulus assures him, “Come sit over here and watch, you can be on my team.” _You can play soon_.

It works, and he reluctantly hands the piece back to Embla, walking over to sit in Regulus’ lap. He’ll take it if it keeps him quiet.

They finish up their game, Regulus learning this is in fact Andrien. Embla wins, of course, since she skipped probably half the board with her new rules. Although, Andrien eyes the piece the whole time. This isn’t going to end well.

“Je joue maintenant,” Andrien says the second they start to reset the board, reaching out for the green guy. _I play now._

“That’s mine!” Embla grabs it before he can, “You can have that one.” 

“No, I don’t want rouge,” He reaches out again, “Give me!” _Red._

“No!” She yells, and Regulus is starting to realize that two kids are more difficult than one.

“Let me see it please,” Regulus holds his hand out, hoping maybe if neither of them gets it that there shouldn’t be a problem.

“Mine!” Embla yells, “You can’t have it!”

“I won’t take it, just let me see it.”

She defiantly shakes her head, and the kid in his lap starts crying. Oh lord, he has no idea what he’s doing. Dianna, though, looks perfectly happy having her piece walk aimlessly around the board as if these two were not fighting right in front of her.

“What’s wrong?” Regulus asks the boy in front of him, who doesn’t answer. Instead, he gets up to go grab the piece from Embla. It doesn’t work, and she ends up pushing him backward. He cries harder, walking right back up to her only for her to yell and push him away again. 

Regulus shoots a desperate glance at James, who seems to be watching what’s happening. He gets up and heads over to help, thank _God_. 

“Hey hey, why are we kicking?” James asks, putting a hand out to hold Andrien back from launching himself at Embla again. Both kids jump to explain their sides of the story, making anything they’re saying completely unintelligible. 

“Woah, one at a time,” James looks at Andrien, “Tell me why you’re mad at Emmy.”

“Emmy took la pièce verte,” He points, “Je veux jouer!”

James sighs, “Andrien, I do not know what you just said.”

“Je veux jouer,” He repeats, “Je veux le vert.”

“No, that’s the wrong direction,” James looks at Regulus, “What on Earth is he telling me?” 

“He wants to play, and he wants the green one,” Regulus translates, inviting Andrien back into his lap.

“Ok ok,” James turns to Embla, “Emmy, what happened?”

“Andrien took _my_ piece,” She complains, “I was playing with it!”

James looks at Regulus, “This is where this goes bad.” He looks between the two of them, “So you can either share it-”

“No sharing!” Embla cuts him off, “Mine!”

“Ok, well then no more CandyLand,” He shrugs, “We’ll put it away-”

“No we won’t!” Embla cuts him off again, “We’re playing!” 

“We’re all done,” James reaches over and starts to pack it away, ignoring Embla hitting him, “Don’t hit, we’re all done.”

“No no no!” She cries, not getting another word in before, Haydn walks over and turns her around to talk to her. Andrien, still in Regulus’ lap, is screaming just as much, but his is a mess of English and French that makes no sense. 

James shuts the lid on the box and shoves it across the ground, just getting it as far as he can before turning to Regulus.

“Welcome to the family,” James laughs, “The epitome of chaos.”

Regulus gives him a small smile, going to say something but stopping when two other people walk up. Looking up, he sees Timothée and Haydn.

“James, are we going to play Quidditch?” Timothée asks, “It’s going to get dark, and we won’t be allowed outside.”

“Yeah, I don’t see why not,” James shrugs, looking from Andrien to Regulus, “Bring him up to Diane, she’ll take him.”

Regulus nods, grabbing Andrien’s hand and standing up, keeping him at his side as he heads upstairs behind Haydn and Timothée as James gets whoever else is playing. Haydn walks Regulus to find Diane, who is sitting around the living room with a few of the other adults. 

“Diane,” Haydn calls her attention over before stepping to the side and pointing at Andrien. She gets up and slips by everyone to grab Andrien.

“I’m not going to ask what happened because I don’t think it’s worth it,” She laughs, “Thank you both.”

“Where are you all going?” Léo asks, leaning over to look at them. 

“Outside,” James chimes in, walking up behind the two of them, “Is there a problem?”

“Not that I’m aware of,” Léo shrugs, “Don’t get anyone hurt.”

“We won’t!” James grabs Regulus’ hand and leads him outside, where Timothée, Sirius, and Alanna already are.

“There are 6 of us this year,” Timothée comments, “We can finally have a keeper.”

“Sirius, Reg, this is your initiation,” James laughs as he walks off towards the shed dragging Alanna and Timothée with him, “Family Quidditch.”

“Horrifying,” Sirius deadpans, turning to Haydn “Please tell me I’m not the only one who doesn’t actually play Quidditch.”

“You’re not,” Haydn assures him, “I don’t either, and neither does Alanna. Timothée does but he kind of sucks, don’t tell him that though.”

Sirius laughs, “I do not want to go up against James, I watch him, he’s way too fast.”

“He’s normally on my team because he balances me out,” Haydn says, “Although, I’m contemplating our third pick.”

“I won’t be any help, but I’m certainly enthusiastic,” Sirius smiles, “Just an offering.”

Haydn looks at Regulus, “Do you play?”

Regulus nods.

“What position?” 

“Seeker.”

“Wait, so have you played against James before?” Haydn curiously asks. 

Regulus nods again.

“Have you won against him?”

Regulus nods a third time.

“You’re with James and me, I’ve decided,” Haydn declares, “Sorry Sirius, your brother seems much more helpful.”

“I don’t blame you,” Sirius laughs, “I’d pick Reg over me in Quidditch too.”

James, Alanna, and Timothée come walking back with two brooms each. 

“Oi James!” Haydn yells, “We’re taking Reg on our team.”

“Oh hell yeah!” James exclaims, handing the other broom in his hand off to Regulus, “Good fucking pick, Haydn.”

“Why thank you,” He laughs, taking the broom from Timothée, “Well, should we go over the rules?”


	24. Family Quidditch

“...So does that make sense?” James finishes explaining the rules, which are essentially just the ones of Quidditch. Play clean, the snitch stops the game, although it’s only worth 25 points because they don’t have 3 chasers, and the Keepers on each team call fouls. Everyone listening nods.

“Cool, are we ready to split?” Haydn asks, looking around at everyone. 

“Who do we get?” Timothée asks, “Sirius?”

“Yeah, you guys get Sirius, we’re taking Regulus,” Haydn clarifies, “You get 5 minutes before we start to divide up positions, deal?”

Everyone nods in agreement, and the two groups walk-off from one another.

The second they’re out of earshot of the other three James starts talking, “Haydn, we’re going to fucking _crush_ them this year.”

“We crush them every year,” Haydn points out.

“No no, with Reg we’re going to _fucking_ crush them, there’s a difference,” James laughs, “I think we put you on Keeper, I’ll play Chaser, and Reg can be our Seeker. That seems like our best choice.”

“Sounds good with me,” Haydn looks at Regulus, “Sound good to you?” 

Regulus shrugs, he doesn’t really care.

“Cool, we’re set,” Haydn leans over to look at the other team, “They’re still fiercely debating.”

“I’m kinda scared we stuck Sirius with Tim, they don’t really like each other,” James says.

“Having Regulus over there would have been worse,” Haydn looks at Regulus, “That has nothing to do with you, Tim is just an ass.”

“Can we talk about what the hell happened yesterday? What got into him?” James asks, of course.

“I don’t know, and my dad didn’t fucking believe me,” Haydn huffs, “Went all ‘I raised him better than that’, but he didn’t fucking raise him! I feel like a goddamn babysitter with my 13-year-old brother, who likes to be an insensitive little prick all the time.”

“Goddamn,” James laughs, “The violence.”

“It’s warranted,” Haydn deadpans, “He’s been doing that shit to me recently too, the other day he mocked me for being adopted!”

“He’s- he’s literally- what?”

“That’s what I fucking said!” Haydn groans, “He does not know when to lay off it, though, like at some point it goes from blunt to mean. My Mum believes me but my dad certainly doesn’t, saying it’s just him being a boy or something. He’s not like, sexist or anything, so at least there’s that, but he’s an asshole.”

“Aunt Fiona is crazy strict, I couldn’t imagine she even likes the mention of that.”

“She is so crazy about the way you speak to other people, especially those older than you are. Even for someone who is a year older, it’s like respect respect respect,” Haydn says. Regulus wants to tell them that that’s the way you’re raised when you’re one of _those_ families, but he doesn’t want to cut in. Although, James seems to catch on.

“You look like you want to say something, Reg,” James says, and Regulus kind of shrugs, “Go for it.”

He takes a moment to find the words first, “Just- That’s the way she was probably raised, as a Carrow.”

Haydn looks at him confused for a moment, “This is not discrediting you at all, but just- how would you know?”

Regulus struggles for his own last name for a second, “I’m a- I’m a Black.”

“You’re a _what_ ?” Haydn marvels, “Ich werde verdammt sein, I had no idea. How did you find out she was a Carrow?” _I’ll be damned_.

“She told me.”

“Makes sense, well, that’s kind of funny,” Haydn smiles, “But that also makes sense, I mean- not to me, I have no idea what that’s like. But I’m guessing you do?”

Regulus nods.

“But even a year older? That’s a little overkill.”

Regulus shrugs, “Just the way it is.”

“Gross,” James laughs, “If I had to be respectful to Sirius? It’d be over.”

Regulus shakes his head, “You couldn’t talk to him unless he talked to you.”

“Nope, sign me off of that shit,” James laughs again, “Are they fucking done yet?”

“Oi! Are you done?!” Haydn yells over at the other group. 

“Hold on!” Sirius yells back before turning to continue debating with the two younger kids. 

“Ach du lieber Gott, they’re taking forever,” Haydn rolls his eyes, looking back to Regulus, “Anyway, random question, you’re good with the little ones, did you use to babysit or anything?”

Regulus shakes his head, “I’m the youngest.”

“Of like you and your family?”

Regulus nods.

“Damn, natural talent than,” Haydn laughs, “You kept them from fighting for a while, I thought for sure one was going to throw a fit in the middle of the game. Just your calming nature I guess.”

“We’re done!” Timothée yells, “Who is playing what over there?”

“I’m Keeper, James is Chaser, and Regulus is Seeker. What are you all doing?”

“I’m Seeker, Sirius is Chaser, and Alanna is Keeper,” Timothée replies.

“Ooo! That’s a good matchup,” James cheers, eying Sirius.

“Oh fuck me, I’m going to get my ass handed to me,” Sirius groans, “I was hoping you _wouldn’t_ be against me.”

“Why wouldn’t I be?” James laughs, “That was just a stupid hope.”

“Whatever, let’s just go,” Sirius suppresses a laugh, “Come on.”

They all head over to the compressed Quidditch Pitch the Potters just have in their backyard, James dragging the beat-up ball case over and setting it in the middle of the field. 

He holds out the Quaffle to Regulus, “Can you throw this up to start? It’s either you or Timothée, and I don’t trust him.”

“Hey!” Timothée protests, “I don’t want to throw it up anyway.”

Regulus nods and takes the ball from him, James releasing the practice Snitch from the box as all of them jump on their brooms. Sirius and James stay in the center, James with the most sinister look on his face while Sirius looks defeated already. Regulus throws the ball up and immediately jumps on his broom to get elsewhere, looking around for that little gold ball.

It doesn’t take more than five minutes and 5 total goals to find it, considering the pitch isn’t normal size, and he heads after it. Timothée comes up beside him, clearly less stable on a broom than he is. Timotheé tries to bump him, but Regulus easily evades it. This is a piece of cake. 

He cuts across the field instead of going around, James and him intentionally narrowly missing one another. He grabs the Snitch and James cheers, causing Haydn to do the same once he realizes. Regulus just laughs, because that was comically easy. 

Timothée, Regulus, Haydn, and Alanna land back at the center first, and Timothée is already complaining. 

“That was bullshit! What was that?” He whines. 

“You lost pretty flat out, Tim,” Haydn laughs, “Regulus literally crushed you.”

“Reg that was sick,” James comes up behind him, giving him a high five, “Like, telepathic communication.”

“I thought for sure you guys were going to slam right into each other,” Alanna laughs, seemingly unfazed over losing, “Ce ne serait pas bizarre pour James.” _It wouldn't be weird for James_. 

Everyone _but_ James laughs, James looks around at all of them. “That was about me, why was that about me?” 

“Guess you should have learned French,” Sirius shrugs, elbowing him before resting his arm on him. 

“I was 3!”

“Sucks to suck,” Sirius laughs, “Are we playing again?”

“I say yes,” Haydn says, “Maybe you guys can make a comeback?” 

“No fucking chance,” James laughs, “We’ll win again.”

Timothée scoffs, “We’ll see about that.”

***

They play three more games in the span of 45 minutes, one of them lasting a particularly long time because the Snitch got stuck flying in and out of a tree. James, Haydn, and Regulus win every single one by a mile. They land back at the center again, Timothée particularly grumpy.

“This is unfair, you guys haven’t lost once!” He whines, “Your team is way better.”

“No shit, that’s why we’re winning,” Haydn points out.

“I think we should switch,” Timothée proposes, “You take Alanna, we take James. Then it’s even.”

“Woah woah, you’re not taking James,” Haydn crosses his arms, “James is _always_ with me, and you’re not taking Regulus either. What if we don’t trade, and you just get better?”

“No, we’re swapping, it’s unfair.”

“We’re not-”

“No, wait,” James stops them, “We’ll make a deal, you get me, but I have to play Seeker. I want to play against Reg.”

Timothée huffs but agrees, “Fine whatever, what do I play?”

“I can do Keeper instead, I’m kind of shit at aiming,” Sirius laughs, “You can be Chaser.”

“Fine, I’m ok with Chaser,” Timothée reluctantly agrees, “Alanna, you can go debate with them about where you can play.”

Alanna and James high five as they cross sides, Alanna walking over and looking up at Haydn and Regulus. Although Regulus is barely taller than her, so she isn’t quite looking up at him. 

“Can I play Keeper?” She asks, “Please?”

“Sure, I don’t care,” Haydn shrugs, “I’ll play Chaser then, and Reg you’ll stay Seeker because that’s our only chance at winning.”

Regulus nods, kind of excited he gets to go against James. James is a fun opponent. He’s better than Regulus, for one, and he puts up a good fight. Not to mention he’s clean, so they’re not slamming into one another. 

They start again, James starting the game this time. Haydn and Timothée are the opposite of James and Sirius, throwing violent insults at one another the whole time. Sirius and Alanna just wave at each other, both of them not really knowing what they’re doing but having fun anyway. 

James spots it first, speeding away in the opposite direction Regulus is facing. Regulus figures he’s not going to catch up if he tries, so he flies around to meet James as comes around the outside. Regulus narrowly misses grabbing for it, accidentally hitting James in the head. James just laughs, the two continuing to chase after the stupid ball. 

Regulus cuts through the pitch again, only to get a ball thrown at him. He slows enough to toss it to Haydn before speeding after James again, who he’s surprised hasn’t caught it. They’re pretty much even, except James a few inches is taller than Regulus is, so his reach beats Regulus’ by too much for this scenario. James reaches out to grab it, and he would have _if_ he was wearing gloves. But it slips out of his hand towards Regulus, who manages to snatch it out of the sky the second it’s close enough.

“Awww! So fucking close!” James laughs, patting Regulus on the back, “That was a great catch, Reg.”

Regulus smiles at him, the two of them flying back to the pitch from where they wandered off to. 

“Who caught it?” Haydn yells down at them, and James points at Regulus. “Hell yeah! Good one Regulus!” 

They land down at the center, and Haydn gives Regulus a high five. 

“It was this this this close,” James says, “I _had_ it, but it slipped out of my hand without gloves.”

“We _still_ lost?!” Timothée groans, “That’s bullshit! No fucking _way_ you guys aren’t cheating.”

“How the fuck would we be cheating?” Haydn crosses his arms, “You heard James, that’s exactly what happened. And you’re _up against_ me, so you know I’m not.”

“James _never_ loses, and you’re telling me _he_ caught it before him?” 

“Woah woah,” James stops him, “Lay off it, Tim, it was a fair game.”

“There’s _something_ off,” Timothée doesn’t stop, “That kid beat James?”

“Regulus,” Sirius and Haydn correct at the same time.

“Use his fucking name,” Sirius shoots, “Jesus.”

“He’s never _told_ me his name,” Timothée shoots back at Sirius. Big mistake, Sirius does not back down.

“ _I_ have. _Twice_ ,” Sirius spits back, “Dieu, quel morveux.” _God, what a brat_. 

“What the hell?!” Timothée exclaims, “I understood that.”

“Oops,” Sirius mockingly says, walking over to where Regulus and James are, “Forgot.”

“Sirius,” James sighs as he walks up behind him, “I don’t know what you said, but you’re not going to win.”

“I’ve done nothing,” Sirius says, leaning over to whisper only to Regulus, “He was not beat enough as a kid.”

Regulus’ head shoots over to look at him, giving him a ‘What the hell’ look. 

“It’s true,” Sirius shrugs, “And you know it.”

Regulus kind of agrees, which he _hates_. Abuse is _not_ good, but this kid is really annoying him. He’s just trying to enjoy this game and at every turn he seems to find something wrong.

“Are you whispering about me?” Timothée asks.

“Why on Earth would I be whispering about you?” Sirius sighs, “Are we playing again?” 

“Is that a good idea?” James leans over and asks Sirius, who shrugs, “If no one is opposed to it, I kind of want to play Reg again.”

Timothée doesn’t say anything for once, and they all mutually decide to play one more game, Haydn and Alanna trading places. Regulus thinks putting Timothée up against Alanna isn’t smart but he keeps his mouth shut.

Regulus starts the game this time, watching as Timothée roughhouses Alanna, who does not care that much. Regulus thinks that’s going to end badly, but chooses to ignore it, instead looking around for the Snitch. 

He spots it before James this time, heading out after it. James does the same thing he did in the last game, cutting him off as he comes around. Again, they’re back neck and neck, James’ arm being slightly longer. But he _still_ doesn’t reach it. 

They chase that ball around for the better of a couple of minutes before James does the stupidest thing Regulus has ever seen. He slowly eases himself to place his feet _on top_ of his broom, enabling him to reach out slightly further. Regulus cuts in front of him to try and stop him from grabbing it, but the ball suddenly flies back and up over his head, right at James. James grabs it, mistakenly celebrating before he can sit back on his broom, sending him, and subsequently Regulus, to the ground only a couple feet below.

James is in hysterics, and Regulus has no idea what he’s finding so funny about the fact that they just fell. Regardless, James’ laugh is contagious, and he starts laughing too as he dusts himself off. 

James jumps to his feet and holds out a hand to Regulus, which he takes. They didn’t hit the ground too hard, but they’re both a mess of dirt and grass. 

James drapes an arm over Regulus’ shoulder, “That was fun!” 

Regulus just laughs, amused by James’ unrelenting enthusiasm. The other 4 people catch sight of the two on the ground, all flying over and landing in front of them. Timothée goes to make a comment, but Haydn smacks him before he can.

“You two are a _mess_ ,” Haydn laughs, “And why are you laughing? What’s so funny?” 

Regulus looks over to James, who shrugs, “We fell, I don’t know, it’s kind of funny.”

“Are you _alright_? That’s question number one,” Sirius says.

“I’m perfectly fine, we only fell a couple of feet,” James looks at Regulus, “Are you ok?”

Regulus nods, “I’m fine.”

“Good, see? We’re fine!” James smiles, Sirius jokingly rolling his eyes. 

“Is that what I think is in your hand?” Timothée points at James’ hand. James holds the Snitch between his two fingers and Timothée smiles, “Yes!” 

“I ended up taking both of us to the ground, but I did catch it,” James laughs, “Sometimes you make sacrifices.”

“And now you’re a mess,” Haydn points out, “Aunt Effie is going to _freak_.”

The back door opens, almost on cue, and Mrs. Potter yells, “Are you all still out here?”

“Yes,” James yells back before looking at Haydn, “You summoned her.”

“Come in, it’s getting dark,” She tells them before going back inside. She apparently didn’t catch sight of James and Regulus, because they _didn’t_ get reprimanded for not being careful. 

“I’ll put brooms back,” Haydn offers, “Sirius, you mind helping?”

“I’ll help,” He shrugs, the two starting to pick them up before heading off to the shed. Timothée and Alanna race back inside, leaving James and Regulus on the pitch.

“We should probably get cleaned up,” James laughs, “I don’t think Mum will appreciate two dirt-covered kids walking around the house.”

Regulus just shrugs, and James moves to grab his hand instead, dragging him back inside. He almost falls over trying to keep up, James is apparently also fast on his feet. 

The second they walk into the house, Mrs. Potter catches sight of them.

“Why on Earth are you both covered in dirt?” 

James just looks at Regulus and laughs, Regulus returning a smile.

“No reason!”  
  



	25. Where Did You Come From?

Regulus steps out of the upstairs bathroom, dressed in different, less dirty clothes than before. If people _hadn’t_ been over he would have taken a shower, but that’s off the table. Although, it would get him some desperately needed solitude because even if he is having a good time people being around every corner is slowly driving him crazy. 

He tosses his dirty clothes in the hamper in James and Sirius’ room, where he, unfortunately, is temporarily boarding, and heads back downstairs.

“Regulus,” His name is immediately called, and he turns to see Haydn, “Aunt Effie told me to let you know that the piano room is unlocked if you want to duck in there for a while.”

He suppresses a sigh of relief, nodding, “Thank you.”

“‘Course,” Haydn smiles, “If you want to come hang out, we’ll be downstairs.” 

Regulus nods again and Haydn walks off, Regulus heading towards the piano room. He shuts the door behind him and revels once again in the silence, which is relative considering he can still hear the people outside. It’s good enough for him. 

He takes a seat at the piano and switches out the book he was playing with Sylvia for the one he was working on alone. But he doesn’t even get to play more than three notes before the door opens. 

He turns around to see the _one_ person he _didn’t_ want to see: Timothée. 

“Hey, can I come sit in here for a minute?” He asks, and Regulus shrugs. He should have said no, _why_ didn’t he say no?

Timothée takes a seat on the bench, pressing at a couple of keys, “What’re you playing there?”

Regulus fails to say anything, resorting to his default of just shrugging at him. 

Timothée stares at him for a concerningly long moment before asking, “Why’re you so quiet?”

Regulus has _no_ idea how to answer that question, stammering for an answer before settling on, “I don’t have anything to say.”

“Nothing? That’s boring,” Timothée says, “That doesn’t really fit well in this family, no offense.”

Regulus takes offense to it because that’s _kind of_ an offensive comment. He thought he fit in fine, but even the mention of it makes him want to sink back away, even if he doesn’t trust Timothée's judgment.

“Where did you come from then? Was your family quiet like you?”

Regulus hesitantly shakes his head. He does _not_ like where this is going.

“Where _did_ you come from? James never mentioned it.”

There it is. Regulus’ anxiety skyrockets, he cannot and will not talk about that. The little he talked to Haydn about was uncomfortable, and it wasn’t even anything bad. This is way way too invasive, and he wants out of this conversation before it gets any deeper. 

Regulus breaks eye contact with him, completely losing the words to reply. Timothée, however, has lots to say.

“I asked you a question, I’m just interested,” He says, leaning his arm on the piano. Regulus desperately wants to tell him to get out, but he can’t. 

Regulus, in his cloudy headspace, manages to shake his head, although Timothée isn’t one to take no for an answer.

“Come on,” He groans, “What, were you abused or something?”

He looks down into his lap at his shaking hands, stiffening at the comment. He doesn’t know, Regulus tries to remind himself, but it doesn’t work. He suddenly feels in danger, although, for all it’s worth, Timothée would never maliciously hurt him. He’s annoying but not mean. 

Although, his next choice in action completely undoes that in Regulus’ irrational head. 

Timothée pushes him lightly, saying something after it, probably along the lines of ‘Just tell me!’ but Regulus does _not_ hear it. He snaps into panic mode, terrified of someone who wasn’t trying to hurt him. He can’t breathe, Timothée is too close, he needs to _get out_.

Regulus doesn’t say a word as he gets up and walks out of the room, Timothée yelling at him. He doesn’t care and walks into the bathroom across the hall. He shuts the door as quickly as possible and fumbles with the lock, barely being able to turn it before he falls against the wall and crumbles to the ground.

The tiled floor is cold under him as he presses his hands on the ground in some attempt to ground himself. He looks around for something, _anything_ familiar. In frantically looking around, his eyes catch the door. He’s too close he’s too close he’s too close-

He backs himself into the corner between the wall and the rim of the bathtub, the furthest he can get from the door without getting up. It at least eases one anxiety, which is all he can do at this point. One thing at a time. 

He pulls his knees to his chest and buries his head in them, failing to choke back panicked tears. Of _course_ this happened to him, pitifully crying in the bathroom while James’ _entire family_ is over. 

He’s in there for the better of 5 minutes before he’s at least breathing, and no longer in such a downward spiral that he couldn’t even think straight. He doesn’t feel in danger anymore, which will have to do. 

He gets up from the ground, noting the shake in his hands as he walks over to the sink. He hates what he sees in the mirror, he looks horrible, like he just had a panic attack in the bathroom. Oh wait, _he did_.

He splashes some water on his face, staring at himself until he musters the courage to walk to the door. He puts a hand on the doorknob, preparing himself for where he’s going. Downstairs, look around, find Sirius, and _do not_ leave his side. 

He does exactly that, spotting Sirius, Haydn, and James in the corner they were in before. James has one of the triplets in his lap, and Timothée isn’t in the room, thankfully. Regulus walks over and takes a seat against the wall next to Sirius, trying not to sit too close. Although, he’s closer than he normally would be.

“Hey Reg!” James smiles, “We’re playing Exploding Snap again, want to play?” 

Regulus shakes his head, knowing better than to leave an opportunity for a yes this time. Sirius looks over and him, and Regulus _knows_ he can feel that something is off. Thank God he doesn’t question it, though. 

He silently watches them play a couple of rounds, denying the offer every time James asks if he’s _sure_ he doesn’t want to play. After the second round, the kid on James’ lap starts to complain. 

“James! I want to play now!” He whines, “Let me play!”

“You can’t play this game, bud, you said you would watch.”

“No, well now I want to play,” He complains.

“What if we play on a team?” James asks, “Me and you?” 

“Ok, I like that,” He smiles, getting up to stand behind James as he deals again. James quietly explains what he’s going to do to him, the kid enthusiastically nodding along. Haydn is eyeing something across the room, and apparently, it goes bad because he yells.

“Dorita! Give that back!” He orders, “It’s not yours.”

“But Sylvia has had it all day!” She whines, “I want a turn.”

Sylvia crosses her arms but doesn’t say anything.

Haydn sighs, “Sylvia, do you want it back?”

Sylvia nods.

“Dorita, she wants it back, she was playing with it,” Haydn firmly tells her, “There are a million toys in here, play with something else.”

“No, it’s mine now,” Dorita sits down, facing the other direction, “We’re sharing.”

“You’re not sharing it, you’re just-” Haydn sighs again, looking to a tear-filled Sylvia, “Come here, Sylvia, come sit with us.”

She walks over and tucks herself right up next to Haydn, Haydn wrapping an arm around her. He takes a quiet but annoyed deep breath, looking back when more kids start yelling. 

“Que s'est-il passé Andrien?” Haydn calls, and James looks over to see what he’s asking about. _What happened, Andrien?_

“Elle m'a frappé!” He points to Embla, who is crying loudly on the ground. _She hit me_. 

“No!” She yells, “He hit me!” 

“Ach du lieber Gott, who hit who?” He asks, “And _be honest_.”

“He hit me!”

“She hit me!”

“Great, amazing,” Haydn groans, “Who do we ask as a witness, James?”

“Uhhh,” James looks around, “Dianna!” 

Dianna looks up from the toy she’s playing with.

“Do you know what happened between Andrien and Emmy?”

“Emmy hit Andrien,” She answers, promptly getting hit by Embla, “Hey!” 

“Emmy!” Haydn gets up, grabbing her and moving her off to the side to talk to her. He gets hit a couple of times, but he doesn’t seem to mind. 

“Andrien, come over here,” James says, coaxing the now crying boy over. 

Andrien walks over, deciding to take a seat in Regulus’ lap again. Regulus sighs but doesn’t say anything, letting the boy fiddle with the watch on his arm. 

Haydn walks back over, leaving Embla pouting in the corner. He sits down next to Sylvia again, who clings back onto him. 

“I can’t stand any of them,” He groans. 

“What’d she do?”

“Hit me, not listen, just staple Emmy things,” Haydn sighs, “She’s sitting in the corner until she calms down and stops hitting people, and I told her if she hits someone else she goes right up to Uncle Lucien, he’ll deal with it.”

“Good plan,” James nods, turning as the kid behind him calls his name. He whispers something to James, but James just shakes his head, “I don’t know what you’re saying, bud. You have to speak English.”

“I asked allons-nous jouer?” He asks again.

“He wants to know if we’re going to play James,” Haydn tells him.

“Yeah, we-”

James is cut off by one of the kids yelling again.

“Haydn!” Dianna yells, “Emmy won’t leave me alone.”

“Emmy,” Haydn sighs before looking to Sylvia, who has one of his arms, “Sylvia, go sit with Regulus or something, I’ll be right back.” 

She nods and moves to sit next to Regulus, sitting _right_ next to him. It’s the feeling of spiders crawling on him from this morning, and after what just happened in the bathroom he is a little overstimulated with how many people are in his space. 

To top it all off, down comes Timothée, his _favorite person ever_. 

“Hey, where’s James?” He thinks out loud, looking around, “Oh James! Aunt Effie wants to see you.”

“Tell her not right now,” James brushes him off, fighting with Francis climbing up his back, “We’re busy.”

“She said she needs you now,” He says, “Just bring Francis with you.”

James sighs, “Fine fine, Francis, we’re going on a ride, ok?”

“Ok!” He smiles, holding onto James as he gets up. James carries him on his back upstairs, and Timothée walks over and points at Regulus.

“You’re down here, you ran from me,” He laughs, going to say something but getting stopped by Haydn pulling him over. He sticks him with Embla instead, walking back to sit with them for a second time.

“I hope Tim has fun with her,” He laughs, pointing next to him, “Where is James?”

“He got called upstairs,” Sirius answers, “Apparently it was important.”

“We’re probably having dinner,” Haydn says, “He normally helps her set the table and stuff, because he’s like, her son, so that makes sense.”

Oh great, they’re having dinner.

James comes stomping back downstairs with Francis on his back. He yells to the whole room, “Come upstairs! Dinner!” 

Everyone rushes into motion, getting up and heading upstairs. James gestures for Sirius, Haydn, and Regulus to follow him up, Regulus urging Andrien out of his lap and getting up. Sylvia stays glued to his side, and Andrien grabs his hand as he follows after Sirius up the stairs. 

The living room is turned into another table, where the kids start to grab their seats with the help of Fiona and Diane. The adults have their own table, where they’re all sitting down as Mrs. Potter sets the food down. Lionel and Lethia are notably not here anymore, probably not wanting to stay for dinner. 

“Sirius, you’re the oldest, so you get to sit at the head of the table if you want to,” James offers, “If you don’t want to I can.”

Sirius looks to Regulus a moment before answering, “You can, it’s fine.”

James grabs a seat at the head of the table, and Diane walks over to take Andrien away from Regulus. She smiles at him but doesn’t say anything as she urges her son to sit down. Sylvia sits next to Haydn, who is already sitting next to James. Sirius leaves a space between him and James for Regulus to sit, so he’s sitting across from Haydn. Timothée sits next to Alanna on the opposite end of the table, sitting next to one another with Dorita across from them. Between Sylvia and Dorita are all 3 triplets. leaving Dianna and Embla to sit between Alanna and Sirius. 

It’s a really loud, packed table.

Mrs. Potter and Fiona begin to set already made plates in front of all of them, Mrs. Potter rubbing Regulus’ shoulder as she sets his down.

Once everyone is finally sitting, just when Regulus thinks it’s already packed in here, the door opens again. 

And two more people walk in. 


	26. A Minute Alone

“Nous sommes ici!” The woman yells, “Juste à temps pour le dîner.” _We are here! Just in time for dinner._

She and the girl who walked in with her greet all the adults before heading over to the kids’ table. The first girl to walk in walks up behind Sirius and Regulus, ruffling their hair. Regulus flinches away, and Sirius just looks back.

“Two new faces!” She smiles, “I don’t recognize you guys.”

“Oh, this is Regulus and Sirius,” James points, “Guys, this is Rosetta.” 

“Sympa de vous rencontrer les gars,” She greets, “Oh sh- Nice to meet you guys, I mean. Sorry, it’s a default.”

“Are you harassing the new kids?” The second girl asks, walking up beside her and propping her head on Rosetta’s shoulder. 

“I’m meeting them, Veva,” She says before looking back to the two of them, “Oh, this is my wife Veva. Veva, this is..uh-,” She struggles for the names for a moment, “Regulus and Sirius, right? Yes right.”

“Hello,” Veva smiles at them, “It’s nice to meet you both, although we’re a little late.”

“When are you not late?” Haydn chimes in.

“Tais Haydn,” She laughs, “We’re earlier than we normally are.” _Shut up, Haydn._

“Rosetta, Veva, come sit over here,” Mrs. Potter yells over at them, “Stop annoying the kids.”

“We’re getting stolen,” Rosetta says, “We’ll be back to talk more once dinner is over, have fun!” 

She and Veva walk off to grab their seats at the adults’ table, and Regulus looks back to his plate, picking his fork up but not doing anything with it. He hasn’t eaten all day, but he’s _really_ not hungry. If he wasn’t comfortable last night, this is about triple that. 

Sirius sighs, leaning over to whisper to him, “Reg, I swear.”

Regulus shoots him a look telling him to piss off. He doesn’t want to hear it right now. 

“You haven’t eaten since yesterday, have you?” Sirius asks, knowing the answer, “That’s not _healthy_.”

“Shut up,” He whispers back, “I’m _not_ a baby.”

Sirius rolls his eyes, dropping the fight and looking back up to James and Haydn, where James is knee-deep in a story. 

Regulus listens to James talk for 5 minutes straight, which at least provides him something to focus on. He doesn’t really know what he’s talking about, but James is enthusiastic about it, so he goes with it.

“James, pause,” Haydn stops him, “I’m trying to follow but _what_ are you talking about?”

James laughs, “It’s not a topic, Haydn, it’s a _feeling_.”

“Whatever you say,” Haydn stifles a laugh, “Sirius, do you know what he’s saying?”

“I never do,” Sirius shrugs, “Remus is the only person I’ve met who can keep up with you.”

“And Remus barely does,” James replies. 

“Pause again, who is that?” Haydn asks.

“He’s one of our friends, Sirius’ boyfriend,” James explains, “You would like him, I think.”

“Yeah, you two would get along,” Sirius affirms, “The same brand of chill.”

“Brand?” Haydn laughs, “What brand?”

“Like, the in-control kind, not too chill but still laid back,” Sirius explains, “I feel like that’s the way Remus is too.”

“Yeah, that’s like the definition of Remus,” James nods, “That and denying help from people, he’s really good at that.”

“What a strange detail,” Haydn comments.

Sirius looks back to Regulus, not saying anything but just staring at him. He doesn’t have to say anything, Regulus knows what he would have said. He’s not eating anything, he’s maintaining that he’s not hungry.

“They’re telepathically communicating,” James loudly whispers, causing both Sirius and Regulus to look over at him, “Hi!”

“Hi James,” Sirius laughs, “Tell Regulus-”

“Shut up Sirius,” Regulus stops him before he can finish that sentence.

“I’m not letting this go,” Sirius shakes his head, “You will.”

“I won’t,” Regulus answers, “Leave me alone.”

“What are you two fighting about?” James asks.

“Nothing,” Regulus replies before Sirius can say anything.

Sirius tries again, “Regulus-”

“No,” Regulus cuts him off.

James just looks between the two of them, clearly confused as to what’s happening. Haydn doesn’t seem to have any interest, continuing to eat his dinner. 

Sirius sighs, “James, tell him he needs to eat something.”

James looks down at Regulus’ plate before looking up at him, “Why haven’t you eaten?”

Regulus just looks at him, because if Sirius doesn’t get it James never will. James is wonderful, but he doesn’t understand. 

“He hasn’t eaten since yesterday,” Sirius says, “And won’t listen to me-”

“You’re not my mother,” Regulus turns to say to him. 

“Ok, but you’re-”

“Leave Regulus alone,” Haydn stops him. Regulus could have thanked him a million times over.

“Fine, whatever,” Sirius goes back to eating off his own plate. 

Dinner continues with sporadic conversations, James at the front of most of them. Sirius bounces back pretty quickly, jumping in and out of whatever is going on. Regulus, however, barely even moves, and it feels like it’s the first time he showed up all over again. 

Timothée and Alanna get up first, Dorita following after them. They go back downstairs, Embla and Dianna taking it as their invitation to get up too. Just as their seats open up, Rosetta walks over with a glass in her hand and takes a seat next to Sirius. 

“Hi Rosetta!” James waves, “Welcome to the kids’ table.”

“Thank you for welcoming me,” She laughs, “When did Aunt Euphemia get two more kids?”

“Like a month ago,” James says, “They’ve been here for a while, you just don’t check your mail.”

“Ok, that’s fair,” She takes a sip out of the wine glass, “She always struck me as the kind who would just end up with more kids randomly, sounds about right.”

“That’s what I said,” Haydn chimes in, “Oh, and you missed Quidditch.”

“I always miss summer Quidditch. We’re never on time, you know this,” She says, “Anyway, who won?”

“Haydn, Regulus, and I won like 4 times before Tim got mad and swapped Alanna for me,” James tells her, “And then the next two games were split, one for each team.”

“You lost?” Rosetta laughs, “That _never_ happens.”

“Regulus is good!” James shrugs, smiling, “At least I had a worthy opponent this year.”

Rosetta leans over to look at him, “You must be damn good to beat James, he goes a million miles an hour in his daily life, let alone Quidditch.”

“We did fall though,” James chimes back in.

“Of course you did,” She laughs, “And by we, who do you mean?”

“Well, I fell, and then I brought Regulus down with me,” James explains, “Mum was mad we came in covered in dirt, but it’s ok because we had a good time.”

“That’s all that matters,” She smiles, pausing a moment before looking between Sirius and Regulus, “Sirius, Regulus, right?”

“Yep,” Sirius nods, “That’s right.”

“Cool, just making sure I got it,” She takes another sip of her glass as Veva walks over, taking a seat next to her. 

“Are you annoying the kids?” Veva asks, “Why can’t you just leave them be?”

“I’m not annoying them, they actually love me,” Rosetta replies, “James was telling me about their Quidditch game.”

“Did he crush everybody again?”

“Everybody but Regulus,” Rosetta tells her, “He’s the second one, hi Regulus.”

Regulus gives her a small wave.

The triplets all get up together, running off downstairs. Sylvia gets up silently and heads after them.

“And there they go,” Rosetta laughs, “Always on the move.”

“Are you guys staying tonight?” James asks. _More_ people? No, no way, no more people can fit in this house. Regulus just wants to be _alone_ for God’s sake. 

“We’ll probably end up crashing here, we normally do,” Rosetta looks back to Veva, “Unless you have plans?”

“I’m legally bound to you, I don’t have any plans,” Veva smiles. 

Mrs. Potter walks over and starts to collect dishes from the kids who have already left. “Rosetta, are you giving the boys a hard time?”

“Everyone thinks I’m being mean, wow,” She laughs, “We’re just chatting! I’m meeting these new family members you’ve brought in.”

“Whatever you say,” Mrs. Potter says before walking away with a stack of plates floating behind her. She comes back over after she sets those in the sink to clean, taking all the boys’ plates except Regulus’.

“Not hungry?”

He shakes his head.

She sighs, “That’s alright, we’ll talk about it later.” She takes his full plate away from him, and he shifts uncomfortably. She’s going to want to know what’s wrong, but ‘everything’ doesn’t sound like a good answer. Whatever, he’ll cross that road when he gets there.

“So, tell me,” Rosetta starts, “How’d you both end up here?”

 _Not_ this question again. Even if she isn’t asking anything invasive, the last time he was asked something like this it went horribly. He looks off elsewhere, letting Sirius answer. 

“We ran away from home,” Sirius answers slowly, laughing, “It’s kind of as stupid as it sounds.”

“That’s kind of badass, I don’t know,” She replies, “Although Aunt Euphemia was a good pick, she’ll invite anyone in.”

“Sirius had been over here before,” James adds.

“Ahh, that makes sense,” She nods, “So wait, let me make sure I’m not completely off, you two are brothers right?”

Sirius nods, “Yeah, we are.”

“I figured, but I’m _normally_ wrong when I figure things, so I thought I’d ask.”

“They look almost exactly the same,” Veva pipes up, “Of course they’re brothers.”

“Oh hush, what if they weren’t?” Rosetta laughs.

“Rosetta, if you’re going to talk the kids’ ears off, do it downstairs so you can make sure none of the little ones kill each other,” Léo yells from the other table.

“Alright, downstairs we go,” Rosetta gets up, everyone following after her. Regulus manages to slip into the piano room as they walk by, shutting the door behind him and _praying_ that no one else comes in. If he doesn’t get at least 5 minutes alone he will start crying, it’s starting to get draining. 

He does get 5 minutes, which is nice, but that’s also it. The second the door opens Regulus fights the urge to tell _whoever the hell_ walked in to _get out_. But, to his surprise, they don’t say anything, and he turns around to see Haydn sitting on the floor, his knees pulled up to his chest and his arms resting on top of them. He looks over at Regulus and gives him a small smile.

“Don’t let me interrupt you, I just need to cool off for a second,” He says, “I’ll be quiet, I promise.”

Regulus nods and turns back to what he’s doing, eternally aware of who is sitting behind him. It isn’t _horrible_ , but he would rather not be in here with anyone. Although he won’t kick him out, because he _knows_ how that feels. And Haydn won’t annoy the hell out of him while he’s in here.

A couple of minutes later the door opens again, Regulus turning around to see James peeking in.

“Hi Reg!” He waves, looking down to Haydn, “Haydn, are you good?”

“Yeah, I’m fine, I just need a minute,” He replies, “Emmy is driving me up the wall.”

“That’s cool, I just wanted to make sure you weren’t dying or anything,” He says, “What’re you playing, Reg?”

“The same book from yesterday,” Regulus answers.

“James! James!” A kid’s voice yells, growing closer as it does.

“What’s up Francis?” James looks down as the kid stands in front of him. 

“Uhh, uh uh- I uhh- she- we were- and-” Francis stammers. 

“Slow down, think about it, and then say it,” James instructs.

Before he can form a full thought, _another_ kid comes up and grabs onto James, and he’s pretty sure it’s Andrien. After him comes the final triplet, pulling on James’ shirt.

“Oh my God, what’s going on guys?”

“Why’re you up here?” Simon pulls at him, “Tu dois venir avec nous.” _You need to come with us_.

“Tu nous manques!” Andrien cries. _We miss you!_

“I don’t know what you’re saying, guys,” James sighs, “I can’t understand you.”

Andrien gets upset that his message isn’t getting across, so while Simon keeps trying to say the same thing, Andrien climbs up to sit next to Regulus.

“Tu nous manques,” He repeats.

“Qui vous manque?” He asks. _Who do you miss?_

“Everyone, toutes les personnes,” He grabs onto Regulus’ arm, “You can come downstairs.”

Regulus doesn’t respond, resenting the fact that every escape attempt he’s made has failed. Andrien gets up and pulls at him, and Regulus decides it’s worth a shot to say no.

“Not right now,” He tries to pull his arm away.

“No! Maintenant!” He pulls harder. _Now_. 

“Andrien, cut it out,” Haydn says, “Go back downstairs with James.”

Regulus looks up to see James, Simon, and Francis all gone. Strange, he doesn’t remember seeing him leave.

“No, I want him to come!” Andrien says, continuing to pull at Regulus’ arm. Regulus almost gets up but stops when Mrs. Potter walks into the room.

“What is- Andrien, stop that,” She walks over and manages to pry him off Regulus, “He wants to be in here right now.”

“No, he doesn’t,” He shakes his head, “Come with me!” 

“Later, I promise,” She smiles, “Ok?”

He sighs, “Ok.”

“Good, go downstairs and play with the other kids, I’m sure James misses you,” Andrien runs off back downstairs and Mrs. Potter sighs, taking a seat next to Regulus, “Are you alright, dear?” 

He nods.

“People will probably start to drip out in about an hour, so it’ll get less crowded in here,” She tells him, “I believe Rosetta and Veva are staying the night, though.”

Regulus sighs, accidentally forgetting she can see him. Thankfully, she doesn’t get mad.

“I know dear, it’s a lot,” She rubs his shoulder, “I trust no one has been giving you a problem?”

He doesn’t answer, because it’s not a no.

“That’s a yes, we’ll talk about it later,” She gets up and walks towards the door, “Always come and find me if you need anything, alright?”

Regulus nods, and she smiles before shutting the door after her. He tries to go back to playing. He keeps getting caught on the same part, though, and he’s not really in the mood to iron out something he can’t get right now. So instead he grabs a book he knows in full, so instead of working on something he can just _play_. Therefore, he doesn’t have to think about it.

A couple of minutes later, while Regulus pauses to look for what he wants to pick next, Haydn speaks up.

“Can I ask you a quick question?” He says, “Sorry, I know I said I’ll be quiet, but I’m just interested.”

Regulus turns around, “Sure.”

“How long have you been playing piano? You’re amazing at it.”

“Since I was around 4, maybe 3.”

“ _3_? That’s insane, I couldn’t imagine even sitting Dianna down for a piano lesson.”

Regulus shrugs, “I didn’t have a choice.”

“That had to have sucked,” Haydn says, “I mean, the result is great, but that’s _young_.”

Regulus nods because he completely agrees. 

“Did your parents play? Is that why?” Haydn asks.

Regulus nods, “It’s a family thing.”

“Of course it is, that makes sense,” He pauses a moment, “Does Sirius know how to play?”

Regulus shakes his head, “Not really. He stopped young.”

“So he kind of knows, that’s cool,” Haydn nods, “Sorry, I said I’d be quiet and now I’m asking a million questions. I’ll let you be now.”

“It’s fine,” He quietly assures him. He actually doesn’t mind talking to Haydn, but he would rather it be quiet in here.

Thankfully, he doesn’t say anything else, and Regulus goes back to playing the piece in front of him.


	27. Tight Fit

The first people leave half an hour later, Diane and Percy popping into the room to hug Haydn goodbye and kind of just wave at Regulus. It’s not for lack of caring, they’re very nice, but the triplets were very upset. Diane said something along the lines of ‘I’ll see you tomorrow’, which Regulus did _not_ like, but there’s not much he can do about that.

It’s been ten minutes since them, Haydn deciding it’s safe for him to head out and go back downstairs. Regulus, however, stays in the piano room, admittedly with the door open. He’ll come out once everyone who is leaving does, which isn’t many people.

A quick knock on the door leads to it creaking open before he can say anything, Lucien peeking in on the other side. 

“Hey Regulus,” He says, “Just wanted to come and say goodbye, we’re calling it a night.”

Regulus nods, not saying anything as Dorita slips into the room and runs over to hug him. Alanna also walks in, giving him a hug afterward. Embla is sitting at her father’s feet, just waving at him.

“Are you ready, girls?” He asks, picking Embla up so she’s standing on top of his feet.

“Bye-bye!” Dorita waves as she walks back to her father, Alanna urging her along. Regulus waves back and Lucien moves to let them out of the room.

“It was nice meeting you for like two seconds, Regulus,” He laughs, “I’ll probably see you soon.” 

Regulus just smiles at him as he shuts the door behind him, turning back to the piano for literally two seconds before the door opens again,

“Reg Reg,” James calls him, “Two things: One, Mum says come say goodbye, two, uhhh- I forgot two, I’ll get back to you on that.”

Regulus stifles a laugh and gets up, following James around the corner to where Esmé, Sean, and Lucette look like they’re getting ready to leave and saying goodbye to Timothée and Dianna. Regulus walks up to stand behind Sirius, who is leaning against the wall. Haydn isn’t up here, presumably already having said goodbye.

“Viens ici viens ici,” Lucette gestures at Sirius and Regulus, who both walk up as Timothée and Dianna walk away. _Come here come here._

She hugs Sirius first, then giving him a kiss on both cheeks. She says something to him before moving to Regulus and doing the same thing, and Regulus tries his hardest to not stiffen up. She catches on anyway.

“Mon cher mon cher,” She doesn’t let go of his shoulders, “You’re so stiff! Se détendre un peu!” _My dear my dear. Relax a bit._

“Désolé,” He quietly apologizes. _Sorry_. 

“Ne sois pas si nerveux!” She taps him on the cheek a couple of times and he tries not to move away too much, “I’ll see you soon, my dear, it was wonderful meeting you.” _Don’t be so nervous!_

Regulus musters a small smile, and she finally lets him go. 

“Maman, are you torturing Regulus?” Mrs. Potter walks up behind Lucette, causing her to look back.

“Non non, I’m just telling him he needs to relax a bit, nothing bad.”

“Regulus is fine just the way he is, Maman,” Mrs. Potter sighs.

“Maman, we’re leaving,” Esmé calls from the door, waving at Regulus as Lucette walks over to the door. Mrs. Potter sees them out, Sirius walking up behind Regulus and putting a hand on his shoulder. 

“See? You’re fine,” He whispers. Regulus just rolls his eyes, because no, it did not go fine. But Sirius can keep pretending it did if it makes him happy.

Sirius wraps his arm around his neck and ruffles his hair, something he’s not in the mood for right now.

“Stop it,” Regulus pulls away from him. Sirius lets go but stares at him a moment before looking up to Mrs. Potter.

“James, do you know where Rosette and Veva are?” She asks, “They’re staying, right?”

“I think so,” He answers, “They’re downstairs, I can go get them.”

“Thank you,” She says as James runs off downstairs. She turns to Sirius and Regulus, “How are you both doing?”

“Good,” Sirius smiles, “I don’t think I’ve ever been to anything like that before, that was a new experience.”

She laughs, “It’s definitely something, but I’m glad you enjoyed yourself,” She looks up behind them, and Regulus and Sirius turn around to see Rosetta and Veva, “Oh, are you two staying over?”

“Can we?” Rosetta asks, “We’ll probably do our normal disappearing trick in the morning if that’s fine.”

“I don’t mind, we’ll just have to rearrange Haydn and Timothée,” She looks between Regulus, Sirius, and James, “Do you three mind if Haydn and Timothée sleep in your room tonight? We’ll just stick them on the floor, they’ll be fine.”

Regulus suppresses a sigh of annoyance, he _does_ mind if two more people are thrown into an already crowded room. Sirius shrugs, James doing about the same thing.

“I don’t care,” James says, “Normally Haydn is in my room anyway, it’s not that different.”

Mrs. Potter looks at Regulus, “Is that alright with you dear? You can say no, we’ll figure something else out.”

“It’s fine,” He says, voice just above a whisper to hide the fact that it’s _not_ fine. 

She sighs, but doesn’t press it any further, “I’ll ask the other two about it, hopefully, that’ll give you enough room to sleep down here.”

“Sounds good to me, thank you!” Rosetta says, “Now, let me go make sure Tim hasn’t killed Dianna yet, she’s being annoying.” 

“Please,” Mrs. Potter laughs, and Rosetta drags Veva off with her. 

“Where is Uncle Léo and Aunt Fiona?” James asks, looking around. 

“They’re upstairs, why?”

“Just wondering,” He says, “Ok, I’m going back downstairs. Sirius, Reg, are you guys coming?” 

“Yeah, sure,” Sirius says, turning to walk off with James. Regulus reluctantly starts to follow after them, but Mrs. Potter calls his name.

“Regulus, do you mind helping me again?” She asks, “It won’t take long at all.”

He lets Sirius and James walk off downstairs, following her into the kitchen.

“I just needed help putting back dishes again, and I thought you would be the most willing,” She smiles at him, and he knows the real reason she asked him to help. “Oh, and I wanted to talk to you, but it’s nothing bad.”

Regulus immediately gets nervous, even if she says it isn’t bad the phrase ‘I wanted to talk to you’ has never led to something good. 

“Don’t be nervous, I just wanted to know how you felt about today.”

“Oh,” He says, “It was alright.”

“Good alright or bad alright?” She asks.

He shrugs, not really knowing the answer to that question. It’s loaded, no doubt about that, and he has a feeling she’s going to get the answer out of him regardless.

“That’s not an answer dear,” She sighs, looking at him a moment, “Are you feeling alright?”

“I mean-” He stops himself, “Just a bit of a headache, I’m fine.”

“Are you sure?” She questions, “That doesn’t sound like it’s the only thing bothering you.”

“It is,” He lies.

“Is it the family?” She asks, handing him something else to put away, “I’m sure it’s nothing you’re used to, they can be a lot.”

He nods, “Yeah, but it’s fine.”

“You’re sure?”

He nods again.

“Regulus,” She softly warns, turning to face him completely, “That’s not all that’s going on, is it?”

He shakes his head, he’s not winning this fight.

“Did something happen today?”

He looks off elsewhere, attempting to become as small as possible as he nods in response. 

“What was it? I promise, whatever you tell me I will keep to myself if you want. I just want to help you, dear.”

“I- I just- I-” He stammers, struggling for the _right_ words. She waits patiently as he finds a better way to say ‘Your nephew sent me into a panic attack and I did absolutely nothing about it’. He can’t do it, so he shakes his head, “Nevermind.”

“Not nevermind,” She says, her tone firm but not threatening, “I can wait if you need to find the right words, no rush.”

He sighs, she knows _exactly_ what to say. “Timothée just- he asked something- he just freaked me out, it’s fine.”

“Freaked you out how?” She calmly asks, “And what did he ask?”

“He- he just asked me about how I got here,” He answers, ignoring her first question.

“And what did you say?”

“Well, nothing,” He answers.

“And what did he do?”

“Kept going,” Regulus takes a deep breath, “He also- just- it was playful, but he kind of elbowed me and I…” He trails off.

“Keep going,” She encourages.

“I-” He pauses a moment, “Panicked.”

“Okay,” She nods, “Like a panic attack?”

He nods, “Like that.”

“First of all, thank you for telling me,” She sighs, “I’m not happy with Timothée, that’s never a question you ask anyone, but I’ll let someone else handle that. But I have to ask, do you have those often?”

He shrugs, “Sometimes.”

“Where did you go when it happened today?”

“The bathroom. In the hallway.”

“I wish you would have come found me, but I understand,” She sighs, “Today was big, I feel bad for having you dive in headfirst. I trusted your brother was going to do just fine, but my family can be a lot. I do want to talk to Fiona because I _know_ he’s been giving you a problem, but I want to ask you if that’s alright first.”

“Uh- I mean- I just-” He stutters for an answer.

“I won’t mention what happened after, is that better?”

He nods, because, to the alternative, it is. And really, he kind of wants him to stop, because it genuinely is annoying.

“Are you still alright with sleeping in James and Sirius’ room tonight with them?” She asks, “I can always work out an alternative, it’s no problem.”

“It’s alright.” It’s not alright.

“If you say so,” She says, “Now that I’ve heard that, ignoring the dishes for now, when was the last time you ate?”

“Yesterday, I think,” He answers.

“You must be hungry, what would you like?” She asks, “And don’t say nothing, you have to eat something.”

“I don’t care,” He shrugs, “Anything is fine.”

“Alright, let’s see what I have.”

***

Regulus climbs into Sirius’ bed, watching as Haydn and Timothée set up sleeping bags on the floor, Haydn’s between the beds and Timothée's opposite that. Sirius is already laying on top of James, and the two are chatting away about God knows what. Regulus has no idea how he’s going to sleep tonight.

“Reg Reg Reg,” James calls, “What owl is better, Bubbles or Geyser?”

“Bubbles,” He answers. 

“See? Geyser is the literal reincarnation of the devil,” Sirius says, “He’s definitely fit to be the Black family bird because he’s the biggest asshole on Earth.”

“He’s never done anything to me when you sent him here,” James says.

“He bit my finger once and it was swollen for two weeks!” Sirius argues, “He’s the bird personification of my mother.”

“Are you two arguing about birds?” Haydn says from the floor.

“Yes! This is very important,” James laughs, “I swear I _hate_ Bubbles, her name is stupid and _she_ is stupid.”

“Bubbles is a fine bird,” Haydn says, “There’s nothing wrong with her.”

“Bubbles is _not_ fine.”

“What has she ever done to you?”

“Nothing but-”

“Nope, there it is,” Haydn laughs, “You’ve done it, Bubbles is _fine_.”

“Whatever, whatever,” James brushes him off, “Well, how is everyone doing?”

“That’s your talking point?” Timothée chimes in, “Nothing else?”

“I don’t know, we have quite the audience in here,” James laughs, “I have to appeal to everyone.”

“Don’t even say what I think you’re going to,” Haydn stops Timothée, who had to have been going to say something bad, “I will tell Mum.”

“I wasn’t going to say _anything_ ,” Timothée groans, “Leave me alone, I’m just trying to enjoy my time.”

Haydn eyes him but doesn’t say anything else.

“They’re fighting,” James loudly whispers to Sirius, “Who do you bet on?”

“Haydn,” He loudly whispers back.

“Good choice,” James replies, looking over to Regulus, “What about you?”

Regulus shrugs.

“That means Haydn,” James laughs, “Wow, we all agree.”

“I also have my money on me,” Haydn laughs, “You’re losing Tim.”

“What on Earth am I losing?” He asks.

“No wait wait, real question,” James cuts in, “If we all were to fight, who would win?”

“Not Tim, I can tell you that,” Haydn replies, “He’s weak as shit.”

“Hey!” Timothée exclaims, “I would not lose.”

“Hell yeah, you fucking would,” Haydn laughs, “I think _James_ could crush you.”

“Woah woah, this sounds like you’re calling me weak.”

“He’s right,” Sirius says, “I could snap you in half and I’m shorter than you are.”

“Ok but you’re Sirius fucking Black, that doesn’t count-”

“Holy shit, pause a second,” Timothée stops them, “Black, as in the _pureblood_ Black?”

“What other fucking Black would I be?”

“Get with the program, Tim,” Haydn says, “We knew this.”

“I didn’t! He wouldn’t tell me,” He points at Regulus.

“Regulus,” Haydn, James, and Sirius all correct him.

“Jesus ok,” He sighs annoyedly, “ _Regulus_ wouldn’t tell me.” 

“Probably because you were being an ass about it,” Haydn shoots at him, “Am I right? Were you?”

“I don’t think I was, I was just asking him,” Timothée defends himself, “He just left, I don’t know.”

“If he _left_ , that was probably _your fault_ ,” Haydn points out, “Not talking for you, Regulus, but you don’t take me as the kind of person that just walks out for no reason.”

“He did, I swear to god,” Timothée shrugs, “I got nothing else to tell you.”

“Regulus,” Haydn calls his attention, “Was ist passiert?” _What happened?_

“Oh, now you’re going to talk in German so I can’t understand you?” Timothée groans, “Come on!”

“Shove it, Tim I’m not talking to you,” Haydn brushes him off, “Regulus, ignoriere ihn, was ist passiert?” _Regulus, ignore him, what happened?_

“Nichts, es ist in Ordnung,” Regulus shakes his head. His German is way shakier than his French, considering he doesn’t speak it nearly as often. _Nothing, it’s fine_.

“Ich werde ihn verprügeln, wenn er etwas getan hat. Was hat er getan?”

Regulus has no idea what he just said, it was way too fast. He hesitantly shakes his head, trying to figure out if he knows what the words of that sentence were.

“Haydn, you’re talking _way_ too fast,” Sirius speaks for him, “Slow it down, German wasn’t as enforced at an early age.”

“Shit, sorry,” He apologizes, “I just said a fancy version of what I said before.”

Regulus shakes his head again, he’s not telling him. He has the ability to confide in one person at a time, and that one person has already heard the story.

“Not to rain on your parade, Haydn, but I don’t think Reg wants to tell you,” James saves him from having to go through more questioning.

“I’m taking that as Tim said something he shouldn’t have,” Haydn glares at Timothée.

“You’re literally making a baseless fucking claim, there’s no reason for that.”

“There kind of is, you haven’t been the nicest person today.”

“What do you mean-”

The door opens pretty violently, effectively scaring Regulus.

“Boys, be quiet, and go to bed!” Léo scolds, “Cut the arguing, we can hear you.”

“Sorry,” Haydn and Timothée apologize, and Léo sighs before shutting the door again. 

The room quiets and Regulus decides even in the silence it’s just _so_ crowded in here. He looks around for anything else to do other than sleep, spotting a familiar book on James’ nightstand. 

He wills himself to speak up, “James?”

“What’s up?” James happily replies.

Regulus points at the book, “Can you hand me that?”

“Sure!” James grabs the book, handing it to Haydn who hands it to Regulus.

“Thank you,” Regulus says, barely loud enough for James to hear him. 

“Do you want me to light that candle there?” James points at the unlit candle to the left of him, and Regulus nods. His wand is, once again, in his room.

Regulus moves forward so James can pick up his wand and light it from across the room. 

“Thank you,” Regulus says again in the same tone.

“Not a problem,” James smiles over at him, but Regulus can’t keep his eye off Sirius eyeing him. Sirius’ stare reads annoyed with the fact that he knows Regulus is gearing up to not sleep much, but Regulus frankly doesn’t care. He just stares back, and eventually, Sirius rolls his eyes and looks off.

“You two have a concerningly high number of silent conversations,” Haydn comments, “It’s almost impressive.”

“They do it all the time,” James adds, “It’s wild.”

“Ok, I’m tired, we’re going to bed now,” Sirius declares, holding onto James tighter and resting his head down on him.

“Agreed, it was wonderful talking to you all, but goodnight,” Haydn lays down. James blows out the candle next to him and uses his wand to flick the light switch. Regulus looks over at James and Sirius, trying to telepathically ask if he can keep his candle lit.

“You’re good, Reg,” Sirius assures him, “It’s not that bright.”

“See? Telepathic communication,” James whispers, “Goodnight guys!”

“Goodnight James,” Haydn laughs. 

About 5 minutes go by of the 4 of them falling asleep when Timothée sits up and looks at him, “Can you please turn that fucking light out?”

Regulus fights the urge to just not do it, deciding that’s harder than just staring at the ceiling for a few hours. He sets the book on the nightstand and blows the candle out, plunging them all into darkness. 

He lays down and looks up at the dark ceiling, not feeling at _all_ like falling asleep. He does not want to have a nightmare in a room with _4_ other people. 

So he just won’t sleep for long enough to have one.


	28. A Pair of Babies

Regulus flies awake, sitting up and looking around at the dark room around him. Another nightmare. A bad one, of course. He’s already shaking and sobbing, barely able to remember where he is and what all these people are doing here. He didn’t want to fall asleep for this exact reason, but yet here he is.

He’s being _way_ too loud, and he needs to get out of this room before someone wakes up. The piano room is out of the question, there are people downstairs too. But if he stays in here, his attempts at calming himself down are going to wake everyone up. But he can’t just stay in the hallway, there are people in his room too.

If he was trapped last night, he’s _really_ trapped now. He keeps a hand over his mouth to try to silence his crying and erratic breathing, but he’s still loud in the dead silent room. Someone stirs and he freezes, hoping they don’t sit up and see him awake. They don’t, but what they say is arguably worse. 

“Can you _please_ shut the fuck up whoever that is?” Timothée mumbles. 

Regulus looks down at him, who isn’t really awake and rather wrapping himself further in the sleeping bag he’s in. Regulus spares a look at Sirius, who is awake and looking at him sympathetically. Sirius glances down to Haydn, telling Regulus that he _would_ be sitting with him if Haydn wasn’t between them.

He’s fighting a losing battle against the sobs stuck in his throat, ignoring Sirius’ attempt to eye communicate with him. It’s not going to calm him down, it’s not worth staring at him. So instead, Regulus lays back down and faces the wall, trying hopelessly to _chill_.

After 5 minutes of attempting to _silently_ have his nightmare breakdown, he feels like someone is trying to split his head open. The headache hit him _hard_ , and he silently pleads for it to _go away._ He cannot catch a break from anything, can he?

Regulus glances up at the clock on the wall that he can barely see, but he’s able to make out that it’s around 5:30. That’s later than he normally wakes up, but he also went to bed pretty late. He has about 3 hours until it’s appropriate to wake up. 

Well, it doesn’t seem he has much of a choice but to lie here.

***

Regulus drifts in and out of sleep until around 8:30 when he knows at least Mrs. Potter is awake and he can maybe get rid of this headache and slightly sickly feeling before _more_ people show back up. And he’s also not getting any more sleep, so it’s not even worth trying. 

He gets out of bed as quietly as he can, notably feeling a little light-headed as he does. He ignores it, slipping out the door and heading downstairs. Low and behold, Mrs. Potter is making breakfast in the kitchen, and she turns around when he reaches the bottom of the stairs.

“Good morning dear,” She smiles, “You’re up early.”

“Mhm,” He walks over and grabs a seat at the counter. 

Mrs. Potter walks over and stands across from where he’s sitting, “I feel like there’s a reason you’re down here.”

“There is,” He says, “Do you have something for a headache?”

“Of course dear, let me go grab it,” She puts down the towel in her hand and heads upstairs. 

She comes back down only around a minute later, a bottle of something in her hand along with a small medicine cup. She pours the same amount she did last time he had it before handing it to him.

“Remember, it’s bitter,” She reminds him. He downs it anyway, the taste being a little _more_ bitter than he remembers. He doesn’t complain, though, he’ll take whatever helps.

“Thank you,” He says as she takes the cup from him. 

“Of course,” She leans against the counter, “That headache is also probably from not eating if I had to take a guess. So, I don’t think we’re going to eat at the table this morning, _but_ you still need to eat breakfast, alright?”

He nods.

“Good,” She rubs his shoulder, “I do not want anyone passing out on me, and I’ve been on a pretty good roll with that recently.”

“I promise I won’t,” He assures her, “Oh, I do have a question, though.”

“Go ahead.”

“Who is coming today?” He asks, hoping the list isn’t long.

“That’s a good question,” She laughs, “Diane is coming to visit for a couple of hours, she normally does alone so that should be nothing to worry about. Rosetta and Veva are probably leaving right after breakfast, and then I actually believe Lionel and Lethia are coming to visit later this afternoon.”

He nods. Good, that’s not too many people. And no kids, which is even better. He’ll take it.

“Oh, and I forgot to ask,” She says, “How did you sleep last night?”

“Uhh,” He replies nervously, shaking his head.

“So that’s a no, you didn’t sleep well then?” She softly laughs, “It’s alright, everything should be back to normal tonight, so you’ll be back in your own room.”

He half sighs with relief, because _God_ he’s tired.

“I know, it’s crowded in here,” She rubs his shoulder before walking off to continue breakfast, “My family loved you, by the way.”

“Really?” 

“Mhm, they thought you and your brother were very respectful,” She says, “And they were over the moon that you guys spoke French.”

“I didn’t know it was that important,” He laughs. 

“To my family, apparently it is,” She shrugs, “I never taught James it because I thought much the same and he fought me on learning it, but now everyone gets on me for having a French son who doesn’t speak the language.”

“James didn’t want to learn it?”

“No, not at _all_ ,” She sighs, “I tried, but he only wanted to speak English, so I decided it wasn’t worth it.”

“Sirius was like that,” Regulus comments, “Moreso with piano, but pretty much everything else too.”

“The two of them are one and the same,” Mrs. Potter laughs, “Stubborn to a T.” 

Footsteps down the stairs cut off their conversation, and Regulus turns around to see Fiona and Léo. 

“Good morning,” Mrs. Potter greets, “Where’s Dianna?”

“Asleep, thankfully,” Léo sighs.

“It took forever last night to get her to go to _bed_ because the boys kept being so loud,” Fiona puts a hand on his shoulder, “Not you Regulus you’re wonderful.”

“I was going to say,” Mrs. Potter laughs, “The other 4 though, definitely. I knew putting them in a room together wasn’t going to end well.”

“They quieted down though,” Léo says, walking over and grabbing something off the pan Mrs. Potter is cooking on. Fiona has already wandered off to talk to Rosetta and Veva.

“Why would you do that?” She pushes him back, “It’s not done! Don’t touch it Léo.”

“But I’m hungry!”

“And so is everyone else, go sit and wait,” She says, and he rolls his eyes but walks over and sits at the counter across from Regulus.

“How are you doing, bud?” He asks, crossing his arms on the table.

“I didn’t say annoy Regulus,” Mrs. Potter cuts in.

“I asked him _one_ question, Effie,” Léo laughs, looking back at her, “I’m not annoying him.”

“That’s what James says, and all the sudden one question turns into 12,” Mrs. Potter replies.

“No wait, I have a legitimate question this time,” Léo turns back to Regulus, “How did you like Quidditch yesterday? They do it every year, and I’m interested in the first time perspective on it.”

“It was fun,” Regulus nods.

“Did you see how Regulus and James came in yesterday covered in dirt?” Mrs. Potter chimes in.

“No, I didn’t,” Léo says, “Did you guys fall?”

Regulus nods.

“Was it James’ fault?”

Regulus nods again. 

“Of course it was,” Léo laughs, “I’m sure he did something stupid. It’s James, if he didn’t I would be concerned.” 

“Hey! Are we talking about me?” James says, running down the stairs.

“Never, bud, we would never talk about you,” Léo laughs, “Are all of you coming down the stairs?”

“I’m leading my entourage,” James hops down the last step, and behind him is Sirius, Timothée, and Haydn, who look much less lively than James. 

“Good morning boys,” Mrs. Potter greets, “I’m almost done with breakfast, you’re all up too early for me.”

“I got up because Sirius woke up,” James points to Sirius.

“I woke up like 10 minutes ago James,” Sirius says before grabbing a stool and pulling it around to sit next to Regulus, “Did you fall back asleep?”

Regulus shakes his head.

“When did you come down here?”

“8:30. You know that.”

“I heard you leave but I didn’t check the clock,” Sirius replies, “That’s not too early.”

James wraps his arms around Sirius and Regulus’ necks, hanging down between them, “What’re we talking about?”

“Nothing, James,” Sirius laughs, “You’re so nosey.”

Someone pokes Regulus on the shoulder, and Regulus turns around to see Timothée looking at him, “Was that you who was making noise at like 5 in the morning?”

Regulus just turns back to Sirius, but Timothée just pokes him harder.

“Hey, I asked you something,” He presses.

Regulus sighs, he’s done with Timothée's questions. 

“Piss off, Tim,” Sirius says, quiet enough that Mrs. Potter probably didn’t hear.

“What the hell?” Timothée says, “I’m not talking to you.”

“I’m telling you to leave him _alone_ ,” Sirius maintains, “It doesn’t matter who it was, it was at 5 in the morning.”

“I’m just wondering!”

“Keep wondering.”

“Boys,” Mrs. Potter scolds, “Stop.”

“I’m not doing anything!” Timothée argues, “I’m asking _one_ question and he keeps getting mad at me.”

“I’m not mad, I’m just telling you to leave Reg alone, so what if it was him?” Sirius shoots back.

“I’m _interested._ ”

“I’m happy for you,” Sirius deadpans.

“Maybe the reason he’s so quiet is because you don’t let him speak for himself!”

“Oh, you have no idea what you’re talking about.”

“It would make sense!”

“Boys!” Mrs. Potter yells, “Cut it out, I mean it.”

“A pair of fucking babies,” Timothée mumbles out of earshot of any of the adults.

Regulus doesn’t want to hear the end of this argument, he gets up and walks upstairs without another word. He ignores Sirius yelling for him, walking into their shared room and trying not to slam the door behind him. He knows better, and he doesn’t want to find out how slamming doors go in this house. He sits on Sirius’ bed and balls his fists in an effort not to pull out his own hair.

It doesn’t take more than a minute for someone to come up the stairs after him, but the footsteps are too heavy to be Sirius’. The door opens and James walks in, looking at him with concern.

“Hi Reg,” He greets, “Are you ok?”

“I’m fine,” He replies, a little more annoyed than he intended.

“Doesn’t sound like it to me,” He counters, taking a seat on the bed in front of him, “What’s going on?”

“What do you think is going on?” Regulus shoots back, “My head is pounding, I didn’t sleep, and the last thing I want to listen to is the two of them argue about me.”

James looks a little taken aback by Regulus’ response, but keeps pressing anyway, “Well, why didn’t you say anything?”

Something about that comment pushes Regulus over the edge, and James is lucky Regulus didn’t punch him square in the face. He tries to will himself to not say anything, but it doesn’t work.

“What do you _mean_ why didn’t I say anything? When the hell did you want me to tell you all that, or how I’ve felt like there are spiders crawling over me every time one of your goddamn family members hugs me so tight I feel like I’m going to _suffocate_ . Or how Timothée has been asking me unbearable questions for two days and sent me into such a panic attack yesterday I couldn’t even play straight afterward. Or how I woke up from a nightmare with nowhere to go and I almost gave myself a migraine trying to keep quiet for the other 4 people in the room. When the _hell_ was I supposed to unpack all that when I haven’t had a minute to myself in two goddamn days-” He throws a hand over his mouth, cutting himself off before he can say anything else. 

He told James _way_ too much, and all he can do is back up and hope he just leaves him alone. But he just yelled at him about things that weren’t his fault, and he cowers away as if he had just yelled at his mother.

But nothing happens.

“Reg,” James breathes out, and Regulus looks up to see him clearly shocked, “Damn, that was a lot.”

“I’m sorry,” Regulus whispers. 

“No, don’t be sorry,” He says, but he doesn’t keep going. They sit in silence for a moment, the air heavy around both of them.

James finally speaks, “Do you- Do you want me to give you a minute?”

“Please,” Regulus nods, and James gets up from the bed.

“Don’t feel bad about it, Reg,” He says, halfway out of the door, “Really, I mean it.”

Regulus just nods, and James finally shuts the door behind him. 

A minute alone. Regulus finally has a minute alone, with the door closed, where he can’t hear people talking just down the hall. 

But he can’t shake off whatever rollercoaster James just threw him through, no matter how hard he tries. How mad he’s going to be because Regulus _yelled at him_ about things that were entirely not James’ fault. How he’s going to definitely tell Sirius, who will be on him all day. How Mrs. Potter will hear the story, and he doesn’t even want to know how that will go. He’s pretty sure that’s the most he’s said to anyone but Sirius in this house.

Goddamnit, he messed up.


	29. Forte!

“James, you look a little starstruck,” Sirius half chuckles, but James doesn’t say anything. He grabs Sirius’ arm and drags him off into the piano room, shutting the door behind them. 

“You did _not_ tell me Reg spoke that much, one, and two, that he could get that loud,” James sits on the piano bench, Sirius hesitantly sits in front of him. 

“What the _fuck_ happened?” Sirius asks, “Literally what the fuck did he do?”

“So, ok, this is kind of my fault and I take responsibility for that,” James admits, “But I went up there and asked Reg if he was alright, and he told me he was fine, I asked him what was going on and he shot back at me about having a headache, not sleeping, and not wanting to hear you guys argue.”

“Fucking-”

“Sh sh, I’m not done,” James stops him, “And then, this is the ‘my fault’ part, I asked him why he didn’t say anything about that before, and I apparently hit a nerve because he just started ranting. It was concerning too, like he mentioned feeling like he was going to suffocate with people hugging him or- Oh, you’re going to get mad at this one.”

“Don’t stop talking, now you have to tell me.”

“He mentioned Tim sending him into a bad panic attack yesterday-”

“He what?!” Sirius exclaims, his anger shifting from being at Regulus to at Timothée. He goes to get up but James drags him back down.

“Don’t do anything stupid,” James says, “I mean it, I don’t think he wanted me to know that.”

“He said it to you,” Sirius argues, “That’s grounds enough for you to know.”

“No, I don’t know if you’ve talked to him, but he’s _so_ overwhelmed, it kind of just slipped out I think,” James explains, “I also don’t care, because that felt like he needed to yell that at someone and I’ll gladly be that.”

“Holy shit,” Sirius groans, “I almost want to feel bad.”

“Almost?” James laughs. 

“Yes, almost,” Sirius nods, “I don’t want to because he’s Reg and he’s an asshole, but Reg, like, _needs_ time alone. He physically can’t do people all the time like _most_ people can, it has always gotten him so worked up. But I refuse to feel any sort of sympathy because he’s my brother and things could be worse.”

“That’s not _nice_ , Sirius,” James jokingly scolds him.

“You act like he cares about me,” Sirius laughs, “The feeling is mutual.”

Before James can say anything, the door opens and James’ mother sticks her head in, “What are you two doing in here?”

“Talking,” James replies.

“About?”

“Nothing,” James smiles back at her, but she doesn’t stop pressing for an answer. 

“What happened?”

“How do you know something happened?” James challenges.

She sighs, “James, you wouldn’t have come down here and pulled Sirius away if nothing happened.”

“We’re just talking,” James crosses his arms, “It’s nothing.”

“James,” She warns, “Don’t play this game with me, tell me what happened.”

“Reg got a little frustrated with me,” James says, “I _may_ have asked him something I shouldn’t have and he got mad at me, but it’s ok everything is ok.”

“Oh mon Dieu, James,” She takes a deep breath, “Thank you for telling me, don’t do anything until I can figure out what’s going on, ok?”

“Got it,” He nods.

“Oh, and come get breakfast, it’s on the table,” She says before slipping out of the door, James jumping up and dragging Sirius out with him. His mum and Aunt Fiona are talking at the bottom of the stairs, and he can’t tell if it’s to block anyone from going upstairs or not. Knowing his mum, it probably is.

Haydn and Timothée are sitting on opposite corners of the table, each eating breakfast silently. James walks over and grabs a seat next to Haydn, and Sirius sits across from him. 

“Oh, look who's here,” Haydn laughs, “Welcome back.”

“Thank you for welcoming us back,” James says as he grabs food to fill his plate, “We missed you very much.”

“Missed you too,” Haydn jokes, rolling his eyes, “I think we’re really setting up today to go well, I can’t wait.”

“Oh shove it,” Sirius laughs, “Mr. Uninvolved.”

“I actually prefer Sir uninvolved, thanks,” He smiles, looking over to James, “Is Regulus alright?”

“Uh, probably?” James shrugs.

“We’re not going to see him for like 3 days after this, you know that right?” Sirius chimes in, “He used to _literally_ disappear after we went to any of those stupid family parties.”

“You all gripe on him way too much, just let him live his life,” Haydn says, “He’s not hurting anyone.”

Rosetta walks in from the other room, Veva in tow, and grabs a seat next to Sirius, “Your favorite cousin is here guys, look out.”

Veva rolls her eyes but takes a seat next to Rosetta, “Also known as good morning boys.”

The two grab plates and start filling them, Rosetta glancing over to James, “I feel like this table is a little tense, what’s happening?”

“You’re so nosey, Rosetta,” Haydn says.

“I’m allowed to be.”

“Why?” Haydn asks, “Literally where did that come from?”

“I don’t know, I just am, you get to fill in the blanks,” She laughs, turning around to look as James’ mother goes up the stairs. 

“There goes Aunt Euphemia,” She turns back to the table, “What is she doing?”

“Probably talking to Reg,” James answers.

“Where is Dianna?” Veva asks, “Is she _still_ asleep?”

“I mean, either that or she’s tearing the room apart, but she’s probably asleep,” Haydn looks around in confusion before looking up to his mother leaning against the wall, “Mum, where’s Dad?”

“I think he’s outside with Uncle Fleamont, why?”

“Just asking,” He says, “I didn’t see him.”

“Yeah, I think they’re outside, doing dad things,” She laughs, looking up the stairs as quick footsteps sound down the hallway, “Dianna?”

“Yeah?” Dianna answers, walking down the stairs and looking up at her mother, “Hi.”

“Hello, sweetheart,” She smiles, “Are you hungry?” 

Dianna nods.

“Go sit next to James, he’ll make you a plate,” Aunt Fiona sends Dianna over, smiling slyly up at James. James sighs at her but grabs a plate for Dianna anyway.

“What do you want, Dianna?”

“I’ll do it,” She says, taking the plate from James.

“No no, let me do it,” He takes it back just for her to snatch it back harder. It slips out of her hand, smashing on the ground next to her. She immediately starts crying, pointing at James.

“You dropped it you dropped it!”

“Dianna, calm down,” Haydn gets up, pulling her chair out and pushing her in the opposite direction of the shattered plate. She runs over to her mother, saying something about James dropping the plate.

His mother comes down the stairs, leading someone else behind her, “What was that?”

“Dianna dropped a plate,” James tells her, pointing at the broken plate on the ground. 

“No no no James dropped it!” Dianna protests, his mum looking up to Aunt Fiona, who mouths ‘Dianna did it’. His mum laughs and nods before walking over to the table, pulling her wand out of her pocket, and charming the dustpan to do the work for her. 

“I leave for 2 minutes,” She shakes her head, smiling, “And you all are throwing plates.”

“I wanted to get in on the action, but I’m eating off mine,” Rosetta jokes back, turning around and leaning to see who is standing behind James’ mother, “Oh good morning! I saw you this morning but I didn’t say hi, so I’m saying it now, hi.”

Regulus timidly waves back, watching as James’ mum walks off to finish cleaning up the broken plate.

“Reg, come sit here, join us,” James encourages, patting the chair next to him that is no longer surrounded by plate shards.

Regulus freezes a second, clearly contemplating the offer. James hopes he still doesn’t feel bad about the yelling thing because James is long over that. He was never mad about it in the first place if he’s honest. 

Regulus, to his surprise, walks over and grabs the seat next to him, and James smiles over at him, “We missed you!”

Regulus gives him a small smile, but James sees right through it. He has a new goal, he’s going to make him laugh. God knows Regulus doesn’t express joy, but he’s going to do it.

“So, you missed Dianna smashing a plate on the ground-”

“James did it!” Dianna pouts from across the room, “He took it and smash! It broke.”

“Ok, I smashed the plate, whatever,” He shrugs her off, “And then, nothing else. You missed nothing, nothing happened.”

“Nothing, James?” Sirius laughs, “Nothing?”

“I’m being literally bullied,” James says, “This is so mean.”

“You know what’s mean?” Sirius points at him, “How often you move around when you’re asleep. I feel like I’m on a damn pontoon boat.”

“That is not my fault!” James points at himself, “ _You’re_ the one climbing on top of _me_.”

“Pause, a pontoon boat?” Rosetta asks, laughing, therefore causing Sirius to laugh.

“Yeah, like the ones that are like, flat and, flat,” Sirius attempts to explain, “James, I’m literally going to kill you.”

“Why are we so loud?!” James yells back, although Sirius wasn’t really yelling at all.

“Why are you yelling all of a sudden?!” 

“AHHH!” James screams, “Forte Sirius forte!”

“Get louder?!” Sirius loudly asks in complete confusion.

“No no no!” James looks over to Regulus, who is looking down at the table and laughing beside him. He did it, no sweat. “Reg Reg, what’s quiet?”

“Piano,” Regulus replies through quiet laughter. 

“Piano!” James desperately yells at Sirius, “Be piano!”

James looks over to Regulus, who has cupped a hand over his mouth and is looking in the opposite direction, still laughing. He’s so much less tense than he was before, and James is sure he’s smiling behind his hand. 

James is just the king of comedy, what can he say?

***

“Regulus,” Mrs. Potter says before opening the piano room door, Regulus looking back to see her peeking in, “Someone is here for you, I think you’ll like who it is.”

Regulus looks at her confused, having _no_ idea who could be here other than the people she listed off this morning. Not only that but someone who he likes? Something is a little off. 

“Just come on,” She gestures for him to follow her, and he gets up from the piano and heads out of the room. He hears an awfully familiar voice, rounding the corner to see no one else but Narcissa standing next to Lethia. 

She looks over at him, “Hello Regulus.”

He looks at her in almost shock, wondering what on Earth she’s doing here.

“Hi, hello,” She smiles, walking over and giving him a hug, “I missed you.”

“I missed you too,” He answers, stepping back to look at her, “One question, what?”

She laughs, “I’m friends with Lethia, and she had mentioned seeing family. She let me tag along today, so now I get to talk to you, so it all works out well.”

Regulus nods, just happy she’s here. Writing Narcissa and talking to Narcissa are two different experiences. 

“You both are welcome to sit, either in here or in the piano room,” Mrs. Potter offers. 

“You lead the way,” Narcissa shrugs, and Regulus gestures for her to follow him into the piano room. That has a door, and no one bothers him in it. It’s clearly the best choice.

“Shut the door,” He says, pointing at the door she didn’t bother to touch. 

She shuts it, “God forbid someone hears you, right?”

Regulus just rolls his eyes, sitting on the piano bench as she walks over to sit next to him. She looks at what he has out, playing a little bit of it on one hand.

“This is hard,” She comments, “Have you learned this already?”

“A little,” He says, playing her the part he’s worked on the most, “I was trying to work on it yesterday, but I kept getting interrupted.” 

“Oh, how did yesterday go?” She asks, “From what I’ve heard from Lethia, it’s a little more chaotic than we’re used to.”

“A little,” He deadpans.

“Was it that bad?”

“It wasn’t bad, per se,” Regulus hesitates, “Just draining, everyone wanted hugs and to talk, I kept _trying_ to hide in here but someone came in every time.”

“You look tired,” She comments. 

“Wow, thanks,” He says, rubbing his eyes, “I am, I didn’t really sleep last night.”

“Why?” She questions.

“I was in a room with 4 other people,” He answers, “I accidentally fell asleep, because I never intended to, and then woke up a couple of hours later, and then never fell back asleep.”

“The 4 people makes sense,” Narcissa nods, “That’s a little tight.”

“Just a little,” He agrees, hoping she doesn’t press further. It’s Narcissa, though, that’s a stupid hope.

“Did anything else happen?” She presses, “There are definitely some details you’re leaving out.”

“I mean, nothing of note,” He lies.

“You’re lying.”

“How do you know if I’m lying?” He challenges. 

She points down to his hands, which are fidgeting with the piano keys without making noise. He puts them back on his knees.

“Are you going to tell me?” She asks.

“No, probably not,” He answers her, “I’m done talking about that, let’s talk about literally anything else.”

“You’re not getting out that easily, Regulus,” She shakes her head, “At least tell me something that’s going on, let me take a little bit of it.”

He sighs, “Everything is fine, Narcissa.”

She gives him a look that tells him she isn’t letting this go, and he realizes he might as well talk to her about it. 

“I mean, really, nothing is really wrong, I’m just kind of overwhelmed,” He says, his voice barely above a whisper, “I yelled at James this morning, it was a total accident and I think I’ve apologized 20 times for it, but I told him stuff I don’t think I should have.”

“What did you yell at him about?” She questions, “What did he do?”

“That’s the bad part, nothing, he was just asking me something,” Regulus admits, “I think he asked why I hadn’t said something earlier about the headache I had this morning from not sleeping but I took it the wrong way and- yeah.”

“Kind of like straw that broke the camel’s back kind of thing,” She nods, “How did James react?”

“He didn’t care, he was more surprised than anything at first,” Regulus shrugs, “I came downstairs for breakfast and he was just normal James loud and happy. I feel horrible, though, because nothing I said was his fault.”

“You did it because you needed to get it off your chest, even if you didn’t _want_ to,” She explains, “I’m sure he knows that.”

“I still feel bad about it,” Regulus says.

“Me telling you not to isn’t going to help, but know that there’s no reason for you to,” She assures him, “More on yesterday, though, how did you like the rest of his family?”

“Most of them are nice,” He nods, “Touchy, but nice.”

“You don’t like touchy.”

“I hate it, actually,” He corrects her, “It felt like my skin was eternally crawling and I couldn’t get alone enough to shake it off.”

She gives him a sympathetic look, “No kidding you’re a little in over your head, but you’re alive so it couldn’t have gone that bad.”

“That’s what I keep telling myself,” He says, yawing, “Although I’m going to pass out tonight, I’m exhausted.”

“You look it,” She glances towards the door, “How about we stop sitting in here on the hard bench and, hear me out, sit on the couch?”

“You’re going to make me fall asleep,” He says, seeing she’s not stopping, “Fine.”

The two get up and walk out of the piano room, taking a seat on the couch next to one another. Down the stairs come light footsteps, and Regulus turns around to see Sirius appear at the bottom.

“Cissy?” He puzzles, walking over to take a seat in the living room chair across from them. 

“That’s me, Sirius,” She softly laughs, “How are you?” 

“Good!” He smiles, “I didn’t think I’d see you _here_ , but I guess surprises are fun.”

“Keeping you on your toes,” She says, looking to Regulus, “Am I going to have to have Sirius explain how yesterday went since you won’t?”

Regulus nods, “If you want to know, ask him.”

“Sirius,” She looks back to him, “Tell me about what happened yesterday.”

“Gladly,” He jumps on the opportunity, “So, before that, on Friday…”


	30. Your Favorite Brother

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> cw: child abuse

_ Regulus sits up in a bed he vaguely recognizes, in a room that feels just familiar enough to be uncanny. He tries to process the details, but it looks like a combination of the cold environment of his room at Grimmauld and the warm bed he has at the Potter’s. Even still, none of it feels comforting.  _

_ There are voices from downstairs, ones he recognizes. He strangely doesn’t find it odd that they carry all the way up the stairs, instead feeling obligated to follow the sound of them.  _

_ He gets up from the bed, opening the door into a hallway that looks exactly like the Potter’s house. Yet, when he looks down the stairs, they’re not the ones he expects. They curve around, the carpeting mirror that of his childhood home. He goes down slowly, making unreasonably creaks as he does. He still can’t figure out where he is, everything seems mashed together.  _

_ He reaches the bottom, the floor looking almost identical to the Potter’s house at first glance. But the details shift back and forth, nothing is clear enough for him to get a grip on where he is.  _

_ There are two women, facing away from him towards the wall. They’re talking, but he can’t hear what they’re saying. Yet, he knows it’s about him. One of the women has long, jet black hair tied back in a bun he would recognize anywhere. The other has hair just below her shoulders, dark brown but not too dark, with the vaguest hints of grey. He doesn’t want to believe that’s who he thinks it is. He doesn’t want to believe that that’s Mrs. Potter talking to his mother so affectionately.  _

_ They turn around at the same time, both giving him the same sinister look he grew up fearing. He opens his mouth to say something, try to understand what they're doing together, but his mother flicks her wand and seals his mouth closed before he can.  _

_ “Regulus dear,” Mrs. Potter says, her voice laced with insincerity, “You aren’t welcome here.” _

_ He shakes his head in confusion, not understanding what she’s doing.  _

_ He looks back to his mother, who begins to almost fade away, and a glance back at Mrs. Potter almost causes him to stumble backward. She doesn’t look like who he remembers. She looks like his mother, advancing towards him with a wand in hand. _

_ She grabs onto him with one hand, holding the wand up under his chin with the other. He knows what’s coming. Even if she isn’t his mother, a wand this close to him only means one thing.  _

_ “Crucio,” She whispers, and his entire body ignites in pain. He tries to scream, get away, anything. But she holds him there, on his feet that barely cooperate, and doesn’t let him go until he manages to pull himself away from her. He stumbles backward and slams his head against the stairs, and the world begins to fade in and out.  _

_ “Regulus,” He hearts but it’s not the face above him, “Regulus, wake up.” _

He jolts awake, looking around a room he doesn’t recognize. He looks to his left, seeing what he recognizes as the amalgamation of his dream. He tries to scramble backward but slams into someone else, and he looks back to see a face he recognizes, but can’t place. 

“Regulus dear,” Mrs. Potter reaches out and puts a hand on his shoulder, but he shoves her off. 

“No!” He squeaks out, cowering as far away as he can get and squeezing his eyes closed, trying to rub away the feeling her hand left on him. Those words lead to nothing good, and he can’t take that again. His head screams at him to run, get out of there, and hide. But he’s stuck. He’s stuck he’s stuck he’s stuck he’s-

“Regulus,” Sirius calls, Regulus looking over to the chair across from him, “You’re in the Potter’s house, you’re safe.”

He shakes his head, he doesn’t believe him. He needs out, but he doesn’t know who is behind him. And he doesn’t want to turn around and find out. 

There are more voices, ones he can’t even try to recognize. They’re talking about him, he’s sure, but he’s too deep in his own head to listen. The person behind him gets up, and he backs himself into the corner of the couch. Narcissa crouches in front of him, her face calm.

“Reg, you need to breathe, you’re alright,” She tries to assure him, but he doesn’t want to hear it. He climbs over the arm of the couch and stumbles off into the bathroom, shutting and locking the door behind him. He falls against the floor as he stumbles away from it, the knocking sounding more like pounding. 

He clamps his hands over his ears as he chokes back sobs, trying to will himself somewhere else where he’s safe. Where he can breathe. Where no one is chasing after him and he  _ doesn’t _ feel like he’s going to die. 

The doorknob shakes and he pushes himself as far back into the rim of the tub as he can. Any headway he made to calm himself down flies out the window as the doorknob twists all the way and the door opens. 

“Nonononono,” He begs, not looking up at who came in. 

The door clicks back closed and he wills himself to look up, seeing Narcissa a couple of feet away crouched down onto his level. 

“It’s just me, Reg, I want to help you, alright?” She calmly says, and he nods. He trusts her. “Alright, you need to breathe, we’ll do it together, alright?”

He nods again, and she coaches him through calming down. He finally gets to the point where he’s breathing, kind of, but enough that he doesn’t feel like he’s dying anymore. But as his head clears he starts to remember what happened. All the people in that saw him  _ freak out _ , and the fact that he  _ shoved _ Mrs. Potter off of him. 

“Are you alright?” Narcissa hesitantly asks, putting a hand out but not touching him. He nods, he’s alright enough. Although, he doesn’t know how he’s going to walk back out there.

“Reg,” She drags his attention back, “I can see it on your face, no one thinks bad of you.”

He shakes his head, unable to verbalize his disagreement. He doesn’t really  _ want _ to talk, either. 

“I promise you,” She says, looking back to the door, “Now, let’s get off the bathroom floor, is that alright?” 

He hesitates, considering he’s still kind of crying and he definitely looks horrible.

“Do you want me to check who is out there?” She asks, and he nods. She gets up and peeks out the door before coming back in, “It’s only James and Sirius in the living room. Is that ok?”

Reluctantly he nods, and she stands up and offers him a hand. He takes it, pretty much relying on her to get on his feet. She leads the way, opening the door to a living room so quiet you could hear a pin drop. He doesn’t spare a look up, he doesn’t really want to know who saw that. 

“Hey Reg,” James greets, notably less cheery than he normally is. Regulus looks up to see him sitting on the arm of the chair Sirius is sitting in.

Regulus just gives him a small wave, if you can even consider it that. He barely lifts his hand, but he responds enough for James to smile at him. Narcissa points to the couch and he gets the point, grabbing a seat as far into the corner as he can push himself. She walks off towards the kitchen, where he hears Mrs. Potter. God, he doesn’t want to have to talk to her.

Narcissa returns a moment later, carrying a glass of water. She takes a seat alongside him and hands him the glass, which he takes gratefully.  _ Anything _ to get him to stop crying. He downs almost half of it before placing it on the coffee table in front of him. 

“Narcissa,” Lethia says, appearing from around the corner, “I know this isn’t a good time, but we need to get going.”

“What time is it?” She asks.

“4:45,” Lethia answers, “We have dinner at 5.”

“We do, shoot,” She sighs, looking back at Regulus, “I have to go, Reg, I have a family dinner and you know how those are.”

He nods, he completely understands that.

“Is it alright if I give you a hug?” She asks, and he contemplates it for a moment. He doesn’t really  _ want _ anyone to touch him, but this is Narcissa. He’s pretty sure she gets a pass, so he nods. 

She draws him into a loose hug, and he melts right into her. He knows it won’t last forever, but he almost hopes it does, just because it’s the first time he’s felt secure in days. She pulls away and rubs his shoulder. 

“Write soon, alright?” She asks, and he nods again, “I hope you feel better Reg.”

She gets up and walks towards Lethia, turning back to bid her goodbye to Sirius. Mrs. Potter sees them and Lionel out. When the door shuts the room turns dead silent again until James says something. 

“Can I sit there, Reg?” He asks, pointing next to Regulus on the couch. Regulus shrugs because he really doesn’t care. James walks over and grabs a seat next to Regulus, smiling over at him. 

Regulus tries to ignore the pounding headache that came creeping back with a vengeance, not feeling like asking for medicine is the appropriate thing to do right now. His head feels like it’s splitting in half, but he refuses to acknowledge it.

But, it seems he doesn’t have to, as a minute later Mrs. Potter walks up next to him with a cup in hand, crouching down to look at him.

“I figured you’d need another dose,” She smiles, holding it out for him to take.

“Thank you,” He whispers, taking the cup and drinking what’s in it. He barely tastes how bitter it is, that’s the last thing he’s concerned with.

“How are you feeling, dear?” She asks, “Is there anything I can get you?”

Regulus shakes his head, opening his mouth but hesitating before whispering, “I’m sorry.”

“Don’t be,” She goes to reach out for his shoulder but stops, “Are you sure there’s nothing I can do?”

He nods, other than let him isolate himself for 2 days straight so he doesn’t have to look any of them in the eye, there really is nothing she can do. 

“If you need anything, don’t hesitate to ask, alright?” She asks, and he nods again. She stands up and sighs, looking to James, “I’m going to ask Léo when he’s leaving because I think it’s soon.”

“Didn’t he say before dinner?” James asks. 

“He did, but he also ignores the clock most of the time,” She walks off towards the stairs, “Don’t get into any trouble.”

“We won’t!” James calls back, a little too loud for Regulus’ taste.

The room falls quiet again, Regulus just waiting for James to break it. It doesn’t take two minutes for him to start talking again.

“Is it bad if I talk?” James asks, looking between Sirius and Regulus.

“I don’t care,” Sirius says, and Regulus just shrugs. 

“Good enough for me,” James smiles, “So I started reading something the other day…”

***

Regulus  _ refuses  _ to leave his room.

He didn’t leave it when Léo and his family left, giving them halfhearted waves and quiet goodbyes from where he was sitting in his bed. He didn’t leave when James asked him if he wanted to go outside and fly around for a little while. And he told Mrs. Potter he didn’t want to leave when she asked if he wanted to have dinner in his room. 

She brought up a plate 20 minutes ago when he apologized to her about 5 more times. He’s eaten enough of it that he’s not starving anymore, but he has a residual fear that if he eats too much he’ll be sick. And after the last couple of days, he probably will be.

Something catches his eye on the ground, looking over to see a small piece of folded paper just inside the door. Out of curiosity more than anything, he gets up and grabs it, opening it up to the most abysmal handwriting he’s ever seen.

_ Hi Reg! Mum said I’m not allowed to go in and bother you so I’m bothering you from outside the door! How’s it going in there? _

_ ~ Your favorite brother James _

He smiles at the stupid note, and partially at the fact James called him his  _ brother _ , walking over to grab a piece of paper to reply with. He writes back. 

_ Alright. Your handwriting is nearly illegible. _

He slides it back under the door, hearing scribbling from the other side. The same paper he wrote on comes back under the door, with more of James’ horribly handwriting on the bottom. 

_ Sirius gives me shit all the time for it, but its not my fault you guys have perfect handwriting.  _

_ I have a really important question though: dogs or cats? We need to break a tie _

Regulus smirks before writing back his reply. 

_ It’s* _

He hears James try not to yell at him on the other side before violently scribbling a response and sliding it back under the door. It’s started with a string of unreadable scribbles before he manages to read some of it.

_ doesn’t matter just answer my question please I’m begging you. _

Regulus sighs, grabbing a new piece of paper because this one is full of scribbles, and writes back. 

_ Cats. No debate. _

James groans before writing back.

_ That’s such a bad opinion and you share it with mum, she said cats are better. Dogs are  _ _ so _ _ much better and I think we should get one _

Regulus shakes his head before writing back.

_ How does it feel to be wrong? _

As James is violently scribbling back, Regulus hears someone coming up the stairs. He hears James try to scramble to get off the ground, but Mrs. Potter catches him before he does.

“What are you doing?” She asks, “I told you to leave Regulus be.”

“We’re talking! Well, not talking, but writing!” James protests, “I’m not keeping him captive, I promise.”

“I don’t believe you,” She says, knocking on Regulus’ door, “Is James annoying you?” 

He shakes his head before realizing she can’t see him, “No.”

“Fine, as you both were,” She says, “If he’s annoying you Regulus, you’re allowed to tell him to go away.”

“We’re ok Mum, everything is fine,” James assures her, and she sighs but walks off back down the stairs. James scribbles a new note and passes it under the door.

_ Can I come in or should we keep passing notes? I don’t know but the notes are kind of fun, but I also like talking. _

Regulus writes back.

_ I’d rather keep writing. I don’t want to talk. _

James’ response is almost immediate and nearly illegible.

_ I’m all good with that! Now another really important question: What kind of chocolate is the best? _


	31. I Love You, Regulus

Regulus deeply appreciates the fact that everyone has been leaving him alone for the past couple of days. Even Sirius, albeit at the hand of Mrs. Potter, hasn't yelled at him  _ once _ for isolating himself and refusing to talk to anyone. He needs the time to figure it out himself, even if he isn’t really succeeding in that. 

Although, he doesn’t miss the concerned glances he gets when he walks downstairs every so often, or not hear when Mr. and Mrs. Potter discuss his well-being downstairs. That’s a little unsettling, even if he knows it’s out of kindness. He doesn’t want them to care about him, every ounce of him says he doesn’t  _ deserve  _ to be cared about, especially from people who have done so much for him.

Someone knocking on the door draws him out of what he’s reading, and he hesitates before calling just loudly enough, “Come in.”

Mrs. Potter peeks into the room, smiling at him, “Is it alright if I come sit?”

He nods but looks away from her. He wishes he said no, he’s  _ terrified _ to talk to her. She cares too much, and he doesn’t know how to cope with that. 

She delicately shuts the door behind her and takes a seat on the bed in front of him, “How are you feeling dear?”

He shrugs. “I’m sorry,” He says, almost involuntarily. 

She sighs, “No more apologizing, you didn’t do  _ anything _ .”

“I’m still sorry,” He shakes his head, “Having you fuss over me.” 

“Nonsense, that’s my job,” She goes to put a hand on his knee but stops before she does, “Is it alright if I touch you?”

“Mhm,” He nods. He’s avoided people getting near him, but it’d be a lie if he said he didn’t miss that motherly hand on his knee or on his shoulder. He just felt like he’d explode if anyone laid a finger on him until he got some time to cool off. 

She rubs his knee, looking at him with a sad smile, “There has to be something I can do to help, dear. You look so pale.”

“I’m fine,” He mumbles. He’s not fine, he just feels like he isn’t worthy of asking for anything, even if he’s been here for a month.

“I don’t want to invalidate anything you’re telling me, but I don’t think you are,” She sighs, moving to put the back of her hand on his head. He’s gotten used to that, and he only gets a little nervous now. “Still not hot.”

“I feel fine,” He tries to assure her.

“You can tell me no, but can I give you a hug?” She asks, her voice soft. He nods, deciding he’ll indulge for only a moment. He lets her move forward and pulls him into her arms. It’s warm, and it’s  _ safe _ . She softly rubs the back of his head, rocking him slowly back and forth. He doesn’t sit back like he thought he would, just letting himself be a little vulnerable for a moment. Only a little. 

“I don’t think I’ve told you this, Regulus, but I’m so proud of you,” She whispers to him, “I’m so proud of how far you’ve come, and how much you’ve pushed yourself to be more comfortable. I know it’s a lot, and it’s hard breaking habits, but I never want you to forget how proud I am of you, ok?”

He doesn’t know how to process that. He’s never heard that before, and he feels unwanted tears pricking at his eyes. 

“I love you, Regulus, and I want to make sure you know that,” She presses a kiss to the top of his head before going back to rubbing the back of his head. 

That breaks him.

He grabs onto her and begins to softly cry into her shoulder. He’s never felt  _ loved _ before.

She holds him a little tighter, not to the point of him feeling like he needs space. 

They sit there for a while, where he feels safe to be a little not ok. Not a lot, but at least a little. 

Finally, he sits back and rubs at his eyes, looking at Mrs. Potter’s unwavering smile.

She runs a hand through his hair, “Do you feel a little better?”

He nods, hesitating before almost whispering, “I’ve never heard that before.”

“Heard what?”

“An ‘I love you’,” He looks down into his lap, “Only Sirius said that.”

He looks up at her when she doesn’t say anything, seeing her face fallen for a moment before she smiles again, “Well I’m glad I get to be on that list.”

He gives her a small smile, “Thank you.”

“Thank  _ you _ for letting me help, even if it was just a little,” She says, before both of their attention is drawn over to the door.

“Mum!” James yells, seemingly aimlessly from downstairs.

“Oh my goodness,” She rolls her eyes before looking back to Regulus, “I bet you this is a stupid need.”

He laughs as James yells again.

She gets up and opens the door, “James, what on Earth do you want?”

James slams into something, presumably a wall, “Ow!”

Mrs. Potter looks at Regulus, laughing and rolling her eyes. 

Footsteps come up the stairs and James’ voice sounds closer this time, “Do you know where I put my glasses?”

“Why aren’t they on your face?” Mrs. Potter asks, unamused. 

“I put them down and now they’re gone and I can’t see anything,” James explains, “I’ve slammed into 2 walls and almost knocked Sirius over.”

“Oh my God, James, how did you lose those?” She sighs, looking at Regulus, “Do you happen to know where they are?”

“James, did you take them out of the bread box?” Regulus asks, Mrs. Potter’s face contorting into almost disbelief.

“James,  _ why  _ were your glasses  _ ever _ in the bread box?” She looks back at him, putting her hands on her hips.

“Bye! Thank you, Reg!” He says before scrambling away. Regulus laughs as he watches Mrs. Potter try to understand what just happened. 

“James!” Mrs. Potter yells after him before turning back around and looking at Regulus, “Why did he put them in the bread box?”

Regulus shrugs, smiling, and  _ he _ knows that  _ she _ knows that  _ he _ knows why. But he’s not scared of lying to her, because he knows she’ll just smile and roll her eyes before brushing it off. No yelling at him for being smug, or cursing his mouth shut until he can tell the truth. She’ll just take it as the joke it is.

And that’s exactly what she does.

***

A soft knock on the door confuses him, considering it’s 11 at night and everyone else has already gone to bed. He doesn’t answer before the door creeks open, James sticking his head in. 

“Reg, Reg,” He whispers, “Are you going to sleep?”

“No?” Regulus answers, confused as to what on Earth James wants this late at night. 

“Come outside, I want to show you something,” He says, gesturing for Regulus to come with him. Regulus looks at him in complete confusion, he’s in pajamas and not really ready to go outside at almost midnight at the end of August. “Just trust me, come.”

Regulus sighs but listens, walking with him downstairs and grabbing a jacket and putting on his shoes before rushing to catch up with James, heading towards the backdoor. James hands him his broom the second he walks out, pulling the door shut behind him and getting on.

“Follow me,” James tells him, flying off towards the roof of the house. Regulus follows him, landing on a small flat spot next to James. James lays his broom so it stays on the slanted roof, taking Regulus’ and doing the same. 

“Look up,” He points, and Regulus looks up at a crystal clear sky, “Keep looking up, just watch.”

A couple of seconds later he sees something bright streak across the sky. A meteor, since  _ when _ was there a meteor shower tonight?

James sits down and pats the ground beside him, “Come sit.”

Regulus sits down, one knee bent and the other outstretched. He keeps his eyes on the sky, watching as periodic bright streaks appear and disappear. 

“Where are you?” James asks, Regulus furrowing his brow in confusion, “Like, where is Regulus in the sky?”

“Oh,” Regulus nods in realization, pointing somewhere behind them, “Leo is probably around there, it starts to fade into the sunset from late July to early August, so by now you won’t be able to see it.”

“When does it come back?”

“Late March, around there. It’s at its high point at around 10-11 in early April, so that’s the best time to see Leo.”

“Where is Regulus in Leo?” James asks. 

“Well, Leo is a lion, and it looks a little like this,” Regulus draws it with his finger, before circling a spot on the bottom right of his fake drawing, “This is where Regulus is.”

“Don’t stars mean things? Does Regulus mean anything?” James questions. 

“Not all stars mean things, but constellations do. Regulus is important in Leo, though, it’s like the ‘Lion’s heart’ of sorts,” Regulus explains, “It's the brightest one in the constellation.”

“You know a lot about Astronomy, damn,” James laughs, “What about Sirius? Can I see that one right now?”

Regulus looks around them, before spotting it just above the treeline a little to his left, “Orion is right there, Sirius is that really bright one.”

“Wait where is it?” James asks, scooting closer to get a better look at what Regulus is pointing at. 

“You should see a line of three stars,” He points at them the best he can, “That’s his belt.”

“Oh! I see them, that left one is Sirius? The really bright one?” James excitedly asks, and Regulus nods, “I see it, damn that’s bright. Does Sirius have a meaning?” 

“You don’t know it?” Regulus asks, well aware of the irony that lies in Sirius’ meaning. 

“I remember Sirius, the person, telling me it, but I have the memory of a rock,” James laughs, “What is it? Is it bad?”

“No, Sirius is the  _ dog _ star,” Regulus reminds him, and James nods in realization. 

“Right right right, yep, I remember,” He looks around the sky, letting the silence sit between them a moment. Almost from nowhere, he asks, “Can I ask you kind of a weird question?” 

“Sure,” Regulus says, looking at him confused as to what he could possibly be asking. 

“Do you like it here?” James asks, “Like, living with us and stuff?”

Regulus hesitates, not because he doesn’t know the answer, but he just doesn’t know where the question came from. “Yeah?”

“That didn’t sound too sure,” James looks over at him, “You can be honest, I just had this conversation with Sirius the other day and wanted to ask you too.”

“Of course I do,” Regulus says, “Yeah, of course.”

“Good, good,” James nods, “I don’t know, this is going to sound bad, but sometimes I get nervous you don’t like being here. I’m glad you do because  _ I  _ like you being here, you know what I mean?” 

Regulus nods, contemplating what he wants to say a moment before deciding it can’t hurt, “Coming here was probably the best thing that’s ever happened to me, James, I don’t think you understand.”

“Really?” James asks, clearly a little shocked, “That’s great, I mean- yeah, I don’t think I really can understand. I try to listen to what Sirius tells me, but it makes no  _ sense _ because I’ve never  _ lived it _ . They just sound like stories to me, but the fact that that was  _ real _ ? Ugh, I just hate it.”

Regulus just nods, taking a moment to decide if this is too far for him. It’s a  _ really _ sensitive subject he  _ hates _ talking about, but maybe a small conversation with James will help with that. Exposure therapy, right?

“I talked to your mother yesterday, and-” He hesitates, but decides to say it anyway, “It was the first time anyone but Sirius had told me they loved me if that provides you any insight.”

“You’ve  _ never _ heard that before? From anyone but him?” James questions, shocked, “Not once?”

“Not that I can remember.”

“That’s horrible!” James exclaims, “I can’t imagine that my family is so affectionate. I mean, you know that you met them. Everyone is very hugs and kisses and I love yous or however you say it in French.”

“Je t'aime,” Regulus tells him.

“Yeah, yep that,” James nods, “I just- I mean, it makes sense why that wasn’t your speed, that’s a big difference.”

“It wasn’t bad,” Regulus hesitates, “Just, a lot. I just need a break sometimes, that doesn’t mean I’m not enjoying it.”

“That’s so weird, those things feel like the same thing.”

Regulus shrugs, “I don’t know, it’s just the way I’ve always been, I hate it just as much as you do.”

“I don’t hate it, it’s just like you’re thing,” James says, “There’s nothing  _ wrong _ with it, either, you just, unfortunately, live in a house of varying levels of extroverts. As far as I go, you can always just tell me to leave you alone and I won’t take it personally. Neither will anyone else, really.” 

“I’ll keep it in mind,” He says. 

James laughs, “This conversation got a little deep.”

“Kind of,” Regulus agrees.

They sit in a moment of silence before James asks with newfound excitement, “Isn’t your birthday coming up soon?”

Regulus nods, “The 26th.”

“Are you doing anything?” 

“Why would I be?” He puzzles, confused about what kind of birthday plans he would have. His birthday has never really been a thing to look forward to. 

“Because it’s your birthday! That’s fun!” James smiles, “You should do something fun, that’s what birthdays are  _ for _ .”

Regulus just shrugs.

“What do you normally do?”

“We’re not going to talk about that,” Regulus says, feeling like that’s the line for him. 

“Ok, well whatever you did, we’re going to do better,” James assures him, “Birthdays are very fun.”

Regulus doesn’t reply, just continuing to look up at the sky speckled in stars. It’s really clear tonight, and Regulus  _ loves _ the stars. They’re just so pretty to look at.

“Tell me more about the stars,” James says, laying down with his hands behind his head, “Where’s Andromeda? Does it have a fun meaning?”

Regulus smiles before pointing at Andromeda in the sky and diving into the story of Princess Andromeda, all while James excitedly nods along. 

James is a surprisingly good listener when he wants to be.


	32. Happy Birthday!

Regulus wakes up from a particularly nice night of sleep to someone knocking on his door, another voice yelling at them. He’s extremely confused, trying to figure out what on Earth is going on. The door flies open and James stands with his arms up, smiling in the doorway. 

“Happy birthday!” He yells, running over and jumping on the bed next to him and opening his arms, “Hug?” 

He can’t say no to such an excited James, so he nods and James throws his arms around him. He squeezes him a little too tight, and Regulus would rather not start today on a bad foot.

“Not so tight,” He tells him, and James immediately loosens his grip to something more reasonable.

James sits back when Sirius walks in the room, sticking his tongue out at him, “I beat you.”

“I told you to just let him sleep, but alright,” Sirius sighs, leaning in the doorway, “You lose points for banging on the door.”

“That’s stupid, and makes no sense,” James crosses his arms, “So actually you’re wrong.”

Sirius rolls his eyes before looking at Regulus, “Oh, and happy birthday Reg.”

Regulus just smiles at him before James decides they’ve been sitting still for too long. He gets up and goes to pull Regulus with him, but Sirius stops him. 

“James, let him wake up a little and get dressed, he  _ just _ woke up,” Sirius reminds him, “Come on, sit at the table and pretend you’re helping your Mum set the table or something.”

“Ok ok,” James walks over to Sirius and goes to shut the door, “Bye Reg see you in like 10 minutes!” 

Regulus smiles and nods at him, James shutting the door and going downstairs with Sirius. Regulus is a little starstruck, no one has ever been  _ that _ excited about his birthday, especially not right when he wakes up. It put him in a good mood, though, so he’ll take it. 

He gets out of bed and gets dressed, not in any rush. He knows James was seemingly very excited about today, but that energy won’t run out by the time he gets down there. It’s James, he  _ never _ runs out of energy. 

He walks downstairs to James practically vibrating at the table as he talks a million miles an hour to Sirius, who is looking at him amused. 

Mrs. Potter comes out from around the corner where her room is, smiling at Regulus.

“Good morning Regulus!” She gestures for him to walk over, giving him a hug when he does, “Happy birthday dear.”

“Thank you,” He steps back, glancing over to James.

“Did he wake you up this morning?” She asks, laughing. He nods. “My goodness, I told him to let you sleep, he’s like a child.”

Regulus shrugs, “I don’t mind.”

“Hi, Reg!” James excitedly waves.

“Hello, James,” Regulus stifles a laugh. He has no idea what James is so excited about, but it’s kind of funny. A little concerning, but also funny.

“Go sit, I’ll set breakfast out,” Mrs. Potter tells him before walking off into the kitchen. 

Regulus takes his seat at the table, looking over as Mr. Potter comes out from down the hallway. 

He grabs his seat. “Good morning boys,” He says, looking to Regulus, “And happy birthday Regulus.”

“Thank you,” He smiles. This is a  _ lot _ of ‘happy birthdays’ very early in the day. 

Mrs. Potter sets breakfast on the table, the variety more than she normally makes. She takes her seat at the table and begins to fill her plate, everyone else following. 

“So Regulus,” She starts, “I figured you wouldn’t want anything extravagant, so for the most part it’ll just be us today. Although, we do have someone coming over in a little while, but I know you’ll like them.”

He looks over at her skeptically, trying to figure out who he’s going to like seeing, but he doesn’t question it. None of them have failed him yet on that. 

“When are they coming again?” Mr. Potter asks before looking at Regulus, “I know nothing, I’m totally kept out of plans.”

He gives him a small laugh, looking over at Mrs. Potter for an answer. “Around 2 or so? I don’t think they’re staying for dinner, though, although I’ll tell them they’re more than welcome to.”

“Do I have to keep my mouth shut about it still?” James asks.

“Yes, James,” Mrs. Potter shakes her head, “My goodness, you can’t keep one secret.”

“I’ve-” James is cut off by Sirius’ hand clamping over his mouth.

“Thank you, Sirius,” Mrs. Potter sighs, smiling, “Let’s talk about something else before James says something he shouldn’t.”

“Let’s talk about trees, trees are fun,” James says after managing to pry Sirius’ hand off.

“You start us,” Mr. Potter tells him. 

“So trees right, they’re in the ground…”

***

Regulus looks back at the piano room door when he hears it open, expecting to see James coming in to say hi for the 16th time in the last two hours, but instead, he sees a tiny, beaming face peek in. It’s Nymphadora, when did she get here?

Before he can even say anything, she comes running up to him and clamors onto the bench before giving him a huge hug. 

“Hi Dora,” He says, laughing at how excited she is.

She sits back and smiles, “Happy birthday!” 

“Thank you,” He replies, looking back to see Andromeda standing in the open doorway now.

“I see you found him, Dora,” She laughs, gesturing for Regulus to walk over. He does, and she gives him a hug, “Happy birthday Reg.”

“Thank you,” He repeats, looking down to Nymphadora pulling on his shirt. She holds her arms up excitedly, and he picks her up. She wraps her arms around his neck and holds onto him, and he can practically feel her excitement. And see it as her hair brightens its purple color, but that’s beside the point.

“We made the mistake of telling her in advance,” Andromeda groans, “ _ The _ crack of dawn, she was asking us when. She was so excited.”

“I didn’t know you guys were coming,” He says.

“Good, that was the point,” She laughs, “Come, show your face and say hello to Ted.” 

He follows her out towards the front door, where Mr. Potter and Ted are both in deep conversation about something. 

“Ted,” Andromeda calls, and Ted looks over to see Regulus, smiling at him. 

“Oh! Hi Regulus, happy birthday!” He greets.

“Thank you,” Regulus answers. He feels as if he’s a broken record with the number of times he’s had to say thank you in the last 5 minutes.

He laughs, pointing at Nymphadora in his arms, “Can you tell she was excited to see you?” 

He nods, looking over at the girl resting on his shoulder. James and Sirius come stumbling down the stairs, James notably glasses-less. 

“Sirius stop running!” James says as he runs after Sirius into the kitchen, James trying to reach across the counter, “Give them back! I can’t see!” 

“Promise me you won’t say anything,” He says, “You don’t get them until you do.”

“I promise you,” James pleads, “Give me them back!”

“If you say anything I’m going to dropkick you into next week,” Sirius threatens, “And you’ll have to give me your transfiguration work all year.”

“Deal,” James holds his hand out, “Give them back now.”

Sirius puts the glasses back in his hand and James puts them back on his face for a second before taking them off.

“Sirius, your grubby hand smudges are now all over my lenses,” He wipes them off on his shirt, turning around to look at Regulus, “Hello Reg!” 

“Hi James,” Regulus says, laughing, “That’s number 16.”

“You’re counting?” James asks, and Regulus nods. “Oh damn, I’ve said hi that much?”

“Yes,” Regulus replies, looking over as Mrs. Potter appears from down her bedroom’s hallway.

“She found you,” Mrs. Potter laughs, “Oh, and this is who I was talking about, was I right?”

He nods, he does like them, she was right.

“See, I know,” She says before looking around at everyone just standing there, “You’re all welcome to come sit, no need to stand around.”

Mr. Potter walks over into the living room with Ted, both of them continuing their conversation and taking seats across from one another, Ted on the couch and Mr. Potter in the chair. Andromeda sits next to Ted, and Regulus looks over to James and Sirius exchanging very heated looks. They both jet for the last free chair, Sirius getting there first and James just sitting on top of him. 

“James! You’re heavy!” Sirius tries to shove him off, but James doesn’t move. Instead, he lays so his head hangs over one arm and his legs hang over the other. Sirius sighs, but lets him stay.

Regulus grabs a seat next to Andromeda, but Dora almost immediately gets up and grabs his hand.

“No sitting,” She says, “Come with me.”

“Where are we going?” He asks, getting up and letting her drag him into the middle of the floor.

“Uhm, uh,” She looks up the stairs, “Up there!” 

“Upstairs?” He asks, and she excitedly nods, “Ok, come on.”

She goes up the stairs, Regulus following behind her. She looks back and forth in the hallway, then looking up at Regulus.

“What’s here?” She asks.

“My room is right there,” He says, pointing at his open door. She takes that as direction, running in to look at his room. He walks in after her, seeing her try to climb onto his bed, which is too tall for her. 

He helps her up, and she looks around excited. His room isn’t that interesting, there’s not much in it. It’s spotless, of course, unlike James and Sirius’ room, but theirs is much more decorated. He has little on the walls, save for a couple of things James came in and taped up or the set of constellation paintings from Sirius that were in his trunk when he came, and only a couple of things spread out on the tops of his dresser and nightstand that are visually appealing.

Still, she’s fascinated, “I like your room!”

“I’m glad you do,” He laughs, her attention being drawn to one of the frames on his dresser. 

She walks over and grabs it, holding it out to him, “What’s this?”

“Let me see it,” He takes the frame from her, looking at the photo. It’s the one Andromeda gave him. “Oh, that’s me and my cousins.”

“Where are you?” She asks, using his help to get back on the bed.

He points to himself on Andromeda’s shoulders, “That’s me.”

“You’re a baby!” She laughs, pointing to Andromeda, “Is that Mum?”

“Yeah, that’s your mum,” He nods, then pointing to Sirius, “And that’s Sirius.”

He realizes maybe he shouldn’t be pointing out all the people in this photo and gets up to grab the other one. She doesn’t ask, excitedly taking it from him. It’s the one of him, James, and Sirius, outside about a week ago. James is hanging between Sirius and Regulus, his arms around both their necks. They’re all smiling, it’s probably one of his favorite photos he’s ever taken.

“That’s you!” She points, “That’s James too! And Sirius!”

“Yeah, it is,” He nods, letting her look at it a moment before she hands it to him and runs off again. He puts the photo down and follows after her, watching her go into James and Sirius’ room. 

“Dora wait,” He stops her, “You need to ask Sirius and James first.”

“Why?” She asks. 

“This is their room,” He tells her. He’s pleasantly surprised when she doesn’t put up a fight, hurrying downstairs and running over to James and Sirius. Mrs. Potter has joined everyone in the living room, sitting in a likely newly transfigured living room chair across from Andromeda.

As she asks them, Andromeda turns and calls for his attention, “Reg, if you want her to leave you alone just let me know.”

“It’s fine,” He assures her. As long as she’s not crying it’s fine, he doesn’t mind walking around with her. 

She walks up to him, dragging James behind her. James looks just excited to be involved. 

“Come on,” She grabs his hand, “We’re going now.”

“Dora,” Andromeda stops her, “Just go with James so I can talk to Reg, ok?”

“Ok!” She smiles, letting go of Regulus and running up the stairs with James. 

“Come sit Reg,” She pats the spot beside her, “I haven’t talked to you in forever.” 

Regulus walks over and sits next to her, waiting for her to pick what she wants to talk about. 

“Well, how have you been?” She asks, “It’s been, what, 3 weeks?”

“Alright,” He says, not wanting to relive the past couple of weeks if he doesn’t have to, “How about you?”

“We’ve had a couple of chaotic weeks, Dora got sick around the middle of last week. She’s dramatic like her father, so it was like the world was ending,” She laughs, “And then I was going to send you a letter to invite you over somewhere around your birthday, but Sirius beat me to it asking if we wanted to come visit.”

“When did he ask?” Regulus questions, trying to figure out how long James managed to keep his mouth shut.

“Monday? Maybe Tuesday? No, definitely Tuesday,” Andromeda says, “She heard me and Ted talking about it and that is all she asked about. She was  _ thrilled _ , I mean like, hair bright bright purple ‘How far away is Friday?’ thrilled. She kept telling me her three best friends missed her and so we had to go early.”

“We still have that title?” He asks. After last time, he would figure maybe they wouldn’t.

“Kids have horrible memories, and she for sure doesn’t really remember that,” She answers, “Although- damnit, I wish I could remember what she called you because it was really sweet, but I can’t for the life of me.”

Just then, as if on cue, footsteps come rushing down the stairs. Nymphadora comes down first running up to Andromeda. 

“Ice cream! I want ice cream!” She chants, Andromeda looking back to James.

“What did you tell her?”

“I was explaining a picture of Sirius and I on the wall, she heard the words ‘Ice cream shop near our house’ and came running down here,” James smiles, “Whoops.”

Andromeda laughs, looking back to Nymphadora, “James was just telling you a story, sweetheart.”

“No he wasn’t,” She shakes her head, “Please please?”

Ted looks back at James, “How far is this place?”

James shrugs, “Maybe a ten-minute walk, right Dad?”

“It’s not far at all, 10 minutes if you’re walking slow,” He says.

“Dromeda-”

“No, don’t suggest what you’re going to unless  _ you’re  _ doing it,” She cuts him off.

“It’s  _ your _ family,” He laughs, “Just take her and the boys, it’ll keep our lovely daughter happy and I’m sure the three of them would love that.”

Andromeda looks at Regulus, who is secretly rooting for the ice cream, that sounds kind of good. “What are your thoughts?”

He shrugs, smiling. 

She reads his mind, looking at Mrs. Potter and sighing, “I think I don’t have a choice.”

“I’m sorry dear, you’ve lost,” Mrs. Potter laughs, “James will lead you there, he knows where that is like the back of his hand.”

Andromeda sighs, but gets up, “Come on all of you, let’s go.”

“Yay!” Nymphadora hugs her mother’s leg, “Thank you!” 

Andromeda smiles down at her, rubbing her head, “You’re welcome, Dora.”

Nymphadora walks over and grabs Regulus’ hand, dragging him to the door and grabbing James as they walk by.

“I didn’t even plan that!” James says to him, “Go me!”

Regulus laughs and rolls his eyes because that is the most James thing he could have said.

“At least it’s warm out,” Andromeda says as she walks over next to Sirius, “If it were freezing I would be a little more upset.”

James just laughs and opens the door, calling back, “Bye! We’re leaving!” 

“Have fun dears,” Mrs. Potter calls as they walk outside, Sirius shutting the door behind them. 

“James,” Andromeda gestures forward, “Lead the way.”


	33. Leo the Lion

The walk to the ice cream shop was nice, Sirius staying back and talking to Andromeda while James and Regulus walked with Nymphadora between them. At some point, they began to swing her as they walked, and she enjoyed every second of it. 

They walk through the gate to the small outdoor ice cream place, encased in hedges. There’s a decent number of garden tables of a couple of different sizes and a varying number of chairs, a few of them with people already sitting. The stand itself is a small building, the window extending across all of it. It’s a really nice place and Regulus is mad he didn’t know existed until today.

“Alright you three, go look at what you want,” Andromeda says, leaning down to pick Nymphadora up, although she isn’t having it. “Dora, we’re looking at what you want-”

“No, Reglus will show me,” She says, reaching out for Regulus a couple of feet away. 

Andromeda sighs, “Do you want to?”

He reaches out and takes Nymphadora, walking over to stand with James and Sirius, who are looking at the menu board. 

“What flavor do you like?” He asks, knowing the board is nothing but a whole bunch of scribbles to her.

“Uhh uhh,” She thinks, “Strawberry! And sprinkles, yeah!”

“You want strawberry with sprinkles?” He asks, and she excitedly nods. 

“Yeah yeah!” She cheers, her hair clearly lightening. He laughs at her excited smile because it’s kind of adorable. It doesn’t take much, apparently.

“Reg,” Sirius calls his attention over, “Has she decided?” 

Regulus nods, “Tell Sirius, Dora.”

“Strawberry and sprinkles!” She happily tells him.

“Rainbow or chocolate?” He asks her, “The sprinkles, rainbow or chocolate?”

“Rainbow!” She eagerly yells back. She’s very excited about this ice cream. 

“What’re you getting, Reg?” Sirius asks as Regulus reads the board for something he wants. He never had ice cream much as a kid, so he doesn’t have an established ‘favorite flavor’. 

“Mint,” He decides, looking back at Sirius. 

“Cup? Medium?” Sirius fills in the blanks, and Regulus nods. “Cool, I’ll order with James, you can go sit with Andy.”

Regulus nods before walking off with Nymphadora, who looks at him in almost disbelief. 

“What?” He asks, setting her down so she can get on her own chair between him and her mother. 

“Where are we going?” She looks up at him with sad eyes.

“Sirius and James are getting it, ok?” He assures her, “We’re waiting.”

“Oh,” She crosses her arms, “I want it now.”

“Sit Dora, we’re going to be patient,” Andromeda tells her, patting the chair.

Nymphadora huffs but climbs up on the chair and watches as James and Sirius order. She doesn’t take her eyes off them the _entire_ time, and the second the guy slides one of them a cup she runs off to go see them.

Regulus looks at Andromeda to do something, but she just shakes her head, “It’s not worth it, as long as I can see her it’s fine.”

He nods, glancing back at her grabbing for her cup on the table as James tries to stop her.

Andromeda laughs, “She doesn’t listen to them like she does to you, I swear she would do anything if it came out of your mouth.”

He raises an eyebrow at her, not quite buying what she’s saying.

“I mean it, she _adores_ you Reg,” She maintains, not continuing the conversation as Nymphadora runs back over with her cup and sets it on the table before pulling herself up onto the chair. James walks over next and sets Regulus’ in front of him, Sirius going around the other side with his and Andromeda’s.

“Thank you,” Regulus says, looking over at James as he sits down. James smiles at him before literally _biting_ into his ice cream cone.

“James, you’re an animal,” Sirius shakes his head disapprovingly, “Literal feral animal.”

“Did you just bite that?” Andromeda asks, and James laughs as he nods. She points her spoon at him, “You are insane.”

“I’m just not weak,” He bites it again, causing all three of them to cringe.

“Hey hey,” Nymphadora cuts into their conversation, causing everyone to look over, “Look look!”

She looks down at her ice cream, her hair turning into a similar color of pink. She looks over at her hair before looking around at everyone for their reaction.

“I’m ice cream!” She exclaims, dissolving the table into laughter.

“That you are, Dora,” Andromeda says through laughs, ruffling her now pink hair, “Good job, sweetheart.”

She beams at her mother’s praise, going back to eating her ice cream as her hair fades back into its normal purple. 

“That is so cool,” Sirius comments, “Just changing all the time? That’s sick.”

“We’ve been working on control,” Andromeda tells them, “Right Dora?”

“Mhm!” She nods, wiping ice cream off her face with her hand.

“Dora wait,” James holds out a napkin, “Take this.” 

She reaches over to grab the napkin from him, not realizing her ice cream was dangerously close to the edge of the table. She knocks it off, Regulus immediately reaching out and grabbing it before it hits the ground, luckily facing up. He just puts it back on the table as if nothing happened.

“Woah!” James marvels, “Those are those Quidditch reflexes right there, that was a good catch Reg!” 

“You need to be careful, Dora,” Andromeda pulls Nymphaodra’s cup further onto the table, “Ok?”

“Ok!” Nymphadora says, clearly not listening.

“What did I say?” She asks, her tone simply questioning rather than aggravated.

“Uhh, uhh,” Nymphadora looks over at Regulus for help, but Regulus catches Andromeda’s head shake to not help her. She looks back at her mother, “I don’t know.”

“I told you to be careful, you almost knocked your cup on the ground,” Andromeda calmly reminds her, “Ok?”

“I’ll be careful, we don’t have to leave,” She assures her, going back to her ice cream.

“Andy, is that a common punishment?” Sirius laughs, “She said it the last time you came over too.”

“That’s our thing, we can stay as long as we behave, no tears and no yelling,” Andromeda explains, “She remembers what she wants to.”

“Oh, Andy, did I talk to you about _how many_ little cousins James has?” Sirius asks, and Andromeda shakes her head, “It’s so scary, there are so many.”

“There aren’t that many,” James stops him, “You’re just dramatic.”

“I’m very much not dramatic.”

“We have nothing else to talk about,” Andromeda says, “Tell me about them.”

“So wait ready,” James starts, “So the youngest is the triplets…”

***

The walk back is a little more tiring, considering Nymphadora gave up on walking barely 30 seconds after they left and _insisted_ Regulus carry her. She’s not inherently heavy but on a ten-minute walk, she gets just a little tiring to carry. Regulus barely minds though, because she’s been happily talking to him the entire time while Sirius and James talk to Andromeda about whatever the two of them get up to. 

“-And then they go like this,” Nymphadora mashes her hands together, “Boom!”

“What about the guy inside?” He asks, questioning how the people inside her theoretical cars are surviving.

“He’s ok,” She assures him, “He got out.”

“Where did he go?”

“In the sky,” She points up, laughing, “Now he’s a cloud!”

“He’s a cloud?” He questions, “What cloud?”

“Umm,” She looks up at the sky for a minute before pointing, “That one!” 

Regulus nods, looking to see they’re almost back home. Nymphadora keeps telling him about the clouds, and he just nods along as they walk up to the door.

James goes in first, “We’re alive!” 

“Damnit,” Mr. Potter laughs, Regulus walking in to see him leaning against the counter, “I was hoping someone would take you. Just you though, James.”

“That’s so mean!” James complains, walking up to roughhouse him. Mr. Potter puts him in a playful headlock and ruffles his hair, James laughing.

Ted walks over to Regulus, who has set Nymphadora down at his feet, “Did you carry her _all_ the way back?”

Regulus nods, and Ted sighs.

“Dora you can walk, he doesn’t need to carry you,” Ted says to her.

“It’s ok, he liked it,” She smiles.

Ted just laughs and shakes his head, looking at Regulus, “Props to you for doing that, I would’ve just made her walk.”

Regulus shrugs, “I don’t mind.”

Nymphadora runs off from him, over to drag her mother out of the conversation she’s having with Sirius and Mrs. Potter. Andromeda picks her up and Nymphadora whispers something in her ear. Andromeda tells her something, causing Nymphadora to lean over and whisper to Mrs. Potter too.

“What do you think they’re gossiping about?” Ted asks.

Regulus shrugs.

“Nothing good, if Dora is involved,” He laughs, “Her ideas are normally a hazard.”

Regulus lets out a small laugh, watching Nymphadora be put down and run over to him.

“Reglus Reglus!” She jumps up and down and grabs his hand, “Come sit!”

“Oh ok,” He says as he gets dragged off towards the couch. She has him to sit in the middle while she sits to his right. Everyone else starts to walk in and sit where they were before, although this time Sirius is on top of James. Andromeda is notably missing, and Regulus turns around to see her walking over with a gift bag in her hand. 

She urges Nymphadora up, “You can sit in my lap, Dora, let me sit next to Regulus.”

Nymphadora gets up and Andromeda takes a seat, Nymphadora climbing into her lap. Andromeda holds it out to him, “Dora said she wanted to give you your present now, so here you go.” 

He just stares at her, taking a moment to process that she _got_ him _anything_. 

“I know, it’s different,” She laughs, setting it on the ground in front of him, “Welcome to the _real_ world Reg.”

He slowly takes off the top layer of tissue paper, taking out an envelope. He opens it carefully, painfully aware of everyone looking at him. He reminds himself it’s not bad attention, he’s just not used to it. 

The front is a generic ‘Happy Birthday’ card, but he opens it to see a decent-sized handwritten card. It’s very clearly Andromeda’s handwriting. 

_Regulus,_

_I have the most vivid memories of you, not even Dora’s age, the shyest kid I have ever met, refusing to do a thing if you weren’t latched to your brother’s side. And all the way up until when I left, that’s who I remember. Yet, 5 years later, you’ve grown into someone who is independent and mature and caring and everything in between. The way you go out of your way to take care of Dora never ceases to amaze me. She loves you for a reason._

_I’m so proud of how much you’ve changed, and I’m thrilled to have you with me because I missed having my little cousin around._

_Happy Birthday!_

_Andromeda (+ Ted and Dora)_

Regulus looks over at Andromeda, who is smiling ear to ear. Dora has the same lit up expression, practically bouncing up and down on her mother’s lap. 

“No, be happy!” Nymphadora pushes the corners of his lips up, causing him to laugh. 

“Thank you,” He quietly says to Andromeda, probably barely heard by the rest of the room. 

She ruffles his hair, “I mean every word.”

Nymphadora points into the bag, “Open the rest!” 

He looks at Andromeda, almost for permission, and she laughs as she gestures towards the bag. He takes out the wrapped present, unwrapping it. It’s a photo album, and he flips through the pages and pages of pictures from pretty much his whole life. Some of them he knows Andromeda wasn’t even there for, meaning Sirius had to have helped. 

The last photo is recent, of him and Nymphadora, the first time he had met her. He’s sitting with her in his lap, holding a book in front of her. She had made him read her _Where the Wild Things Are_ , her absolute favorite book. She’s absolutely beaming. 

Following it are blank pages, leaving spots for him to keep putting in photos. 

He looks over at Andromeda with admiration, failing to find the words to tell her how much he loves it.

“Did I do a good job?” She asks, laughing. 

He nods, leaning over to give her a hug. Nymphadora taps him probably a million times as he does, and he ignores her to favor Andromeda. But that doesn’t last long.

“There’s more!” She shakes him, “My gift!” 

“Ok ok,” Andromeda laughs, “Regulus will open yours, patience Dora.”

“I’ll get it,” She gets off Andromeda’s lap and reaches in the bag, pulling out two things. She hands him a paper first, keeping a strangely wrapped present in her hand. She climbs onto Regulus’ lap instead, and he opens up the folded paper. It’s a drawing, definitely done by a toddler, that he doesn’t quite understand but is still kind of adorable. 

“Look, that’s you,” She points at one of the vaguely human figures, “And that’s me, and that’s animals, and over there is James and Sirius because they don’t like playing.”

Regulus lets out a small laugh, glancing up at Sirius and James, who are both laughing at her comment. Nymphadora looks back at him, smiling. 

“Do you like it?” She asks excitedly.

“I love it,” He tells her, and she replaces the paper in his hand for the gift. 

“I was originally going to have Dora wrap it,” Andromeda chimes in, “But I remembered she’s three, so I had to somehow do it.”

“Open open,” She taps his arm, and he opens up one of her animal toys. A lion, the one he prefers to play as. “It’s the lion, you like the lion!” 

“I do,” He nods, smiling at the fact that she committed it to memory, “Thank you, Dora.”

She turns around and gives him a huge hug, everyone ‘awwing’ at them. He lets her squeeze him tighter than he would let most people, to the point where she’s practically choking him. It doesn’t matter, he _almost_ likes it. 

She finally sits back and looks over the lion toy still in his hand, “What’s his name?”

“Name?” He questions.

“Yeah! He has to have a name,” She tells him.

“What about…” He tries to think of lion related names, “Leo?”

“Yeah!” She excitedly nods, and he glances over to Andromeda.

“Good pick Reg,” She laughs, “Very you.”

“Oh, is that- I know that that means!” James realizes, far after everyone else.

“Glad you’ve caught up,” Sirius stifles a laugh.

Nymphadora looks around before looking at Regulus, “What now?”

“Already?” Andromeda sighs, “Always need something new.”

“Is it nice out?” Mrs. Potter asks, and Andromeda nods. “Boys, why don’t you take Dora outside? Get out a little bit of pent up energy.”

“God knows she needs that,” Ted comments, completely missed by Nymphadora. 

“That sounds fun to me,” James says, pushing Sirius off his lap, “Get up Sirius.”

“Give me a minute, my God,” Sirius gets off James, letting James get up. 

“Dora,” James says, “Wanna go outside?”

“Yeah!” She nods, getting up and grabbing Regulus’ hand, “Come on, we’re going outside.”

“I’ll be right there, Dora,” He tells her, James walking over and grabbing her hand so she can follow him instead. They head outside, and Regulus looks back over to Andromeda.

“Hi,” She smiles at him.

He loses all the words he wanted to say, opening his mouth a couple of times but failing to actually say anything. She just gestures for him to come in for another hug. This is a lot of hugging, but oddly it’s ok. He doesn’t let it linger for too long, he doesn’t want to push himself too far and feel like he’s going to explode for the rest of today.

“Could you tell I had to have Sirius help?” She laughs, “It took him forever because your brother is a mess, but hey, I think we formulated a good collection.”

“Yeah,” He agrees, still a little starstruck. He’s not really used to gifts. 

“I know, it’s a little new,” She ruffles his hair, “Don’t look like I just killed someone.”

“Sorry,” He shakes his head and smiles, “And yeah, it is.”

The back door opens and Regulus looks over to see Nymphadora gesturing for him.

“Come on Reglus!” She whines.

“I think she wants you,” Andromeda laughs, Regulus getting up to head over to the door. 

He smiles once more back at Andromeda before getting pulled outside, just barely shutting the door behind him.


	34. Wax Seal

The four of them were only outside for about an hour before Nymphadora started to get tired and climbed up to sit with Regulus at the picnic table he was refereeing at. She fell asleep against him probably 10 minutes ago, which he’ll take because it saves him from whatever violent game Sirius and James are playing. 

“What are you two doing out here?” Andromeda yells from the back door, causing the three of them to all look over. 

“Nothing!” Sirius and James say in tandem.

“Whatever you say,” She laughs, walking over to sit next to Regulus, “Is she asleep?”

He nods, glancing over to Sirius and James tackling each other on the ground.

“Oh perfect, then we’re probably going to get going,” Andromeda gets up, Regulus following. “Do you mind going in and handing her off to Ted? I’ll be right in after I tell those two idiots.”

Regulus nods again before heading back inside, the room filled with conversation between Ted, Mr. Potter, and Mrs. Potter in the kitchen. They look over when Regulus shuts the door behind him. 

“Hello Regulus,” Mrs. Potter greets, and Regulus just smiles back at her. Ted apparently figures out that Nymphadora is asleep and his face lights up.

“She’s asleep?” He asks, and Regulus nods back. “Oh thank God.”

He gestures for Regulus to walk over, taking Nymphadora from him when he does. He’s  _ very _ careful not to wake her up, presumably because she would cry and they would not be able to leave. 

The back door opens and Andromeda comes in first, followed by Sirius and James covered in grass stains. 

“Hel- Why are you covered in grass?” Mrs. Potter asks, sighing, “You two are a mess.”

“We’re not that messy,” James argues, looking down at himself, “Ok, maybe we’re a little messy.”

“Go change so you don’t track dirt all over the house,” She tells them.

“But they’re leaving, we’ll do it after,” James says, slipping his shoes off. 

“So do it fast, go,” She maintains, and James huffs but drags Sirius with him up the stairs. 

Andromeda walks over and laughs, pointing at Nymphadora, “We’re going to be in trouble later, Ted.”

“At least we won’t have to leave with a screaming kid,” He reasons, “That would arguably be worse.”

“She’ll be mad when we get home, but oh well,” Andromeda looks over to Regulus, “I probably won’t see you guys again before you go off to school, will I?”

“Probably not,” He agrees.

“Damn, 5 years and I only got to see you a few times,” She sighs, “Oh well, you’ll come back.”

“Maybe,” He jokingly shrugs, and she ruffles his hair.

“You need to get away from your brother,” She laughs, “That sounded exactly like him.” 

Sirius and James come running back down the stairs, Sirius attack-hugging Andromeda. 

“Oh hi Sirius,” She turns to hug him back, “I was just telling Regulus, I’m gonna miss you guys.”

“I’m gonna miss you too Andy,” He says, not letting go, “I didn’t get to see you enough.”

“I’ll see you more soon, don’t worry,” She steps back to look at him, keeping her hands on his shoulders, “Write often, alright?”

“I will,” He assures her, and she gives him another hug before turning around to look at Regulus.

“You’re giving me another hug, come here,” She gestures for him to walk forward, and he reluctantly gives her  _ another _ hug. It’s not really that reluctant, but he’s given her a lot of physical contact today. “Yeah yeah, you can pretend you hate it.”

He doesn’t say anything, and she lets him go after a moment.

“The writing goes double for you,” She playfully scolds, “You  _ never _ write me.”

“Sorry,” He apologizes, “I don’t have much to write about.”

“It doesn’t matter what it is, just that I know you’re alive,” She says, “But I digress, we should get home before Dora starts to realize we’re leaving.”

“She’s pretty asleep, but I would rather deal with the screaming at home,” Ted says, looking into the kitchen where Mr. and Mrs. Potter are, “Thank you guys for having us.”

“Of course! Thank you both for coming,” Mrs. Potter smiles, “I wish you the best for when she wakes up.”

“Thank you, God knows we need it,” Andromeda sighs as they start to walk to the door. Sirius follows to give Andromeda yet another hug, and Andromeda bids her goodbyes to James as well. 

“We’ll see you soon,” Andromeda waves as she follows Ted out the door, “Happy birthday again Reg.”

“Thank you,” He replies as he waves from halfway across the room as Andromeda shuts the door behind her.

“Oh Regulus,” Mrs. Potter says, “I put the gifts Andromeda gave you up in your room for you.”

“Thank you,” He answers, and she smiles over at him before looking back to what she’s cooking. He heads off towards the piano room, deciding he’ll spend more time with the rest of them later. He’s done for now.

“Oh, Reg’s done,” Sirius laughs, and Regulus just rolls his eyes at him before disappearing around the corner. 

***

Dinner went well, and on top of that Mrs. Potter baked a cake, and he could tell she asked Sirius for help because it was exactly what Regulus liked. James led them in a horrifying rendition of Happy Birthday, an experience Regulus both despised and adored. Being sung to is very low on Regulus’ list of preferred activities to be involved in. 

He’s back in the piano room, as Mrs. Potter waved all three boys off after they finished. He found it a little odd but just went along with it, he’s not one to normally complain about being told to go off by himself.

“Reg!” James comes yelling down the hallway into the piano room, “Reg, you’re not done with us yet, come come.”

Regulus gets up hesitantly, very skeptical as to what else James could need him for. 

“Don’t look scared it’s ok,” James extends his hand, “Come on!”

Regulus takes James’ hand, causing James to drag him out into the living room, where everyone is already sitting. On the coffee table are  _ several  _ wrapped gifts, and Regulus literally just freezes. He looks over at James, who stopped walking and is looking at him confused.

“What?” James asks, clearly  _ not _ understanding why Regulus is a little caught off guard. Scratch that, very caught off guard.

“Uh- just- nothing,” He keeps walking, taking the seat between James and Mrs. Potter on the couch.

Mrs. Potter rubs his shoulder, “Don’t look so starstruck, it’s your birthday and it would be wrong not to get you anything.”

“You didn’t have to,” He says to her, his voice barely above a whisper. He feels like he’s going to cry and he hasn’t even opened any of them.

“Nonsense, of course we did,” She smiles at him, “We buy both our other sons presents, you’re no exception.”

He’s practically speechless, looking back to the table as James hands him something. 

“Open mine first,” He excitedly tells him, and Regulus takes the oddly wrapped present from him. “Can you tell I wrapped it?”

“A little,” Regulus softly laughs as he carefully opens it, seeing a rock with googly eyes and a small paper Gryffindor tie on. 

“It’s James Jr.! He’s a rock!” James beams, “Pretty good, huh?”

“Where are his glasses?” Regulus asks, laughing at how  _ James _ this gift is. 

“Glasses!” James exclaims, looking over to Sirius, who is in hysterics, “Is that what I forgot?!”

Sirius nods, not even able to respond because he’s laughing so hard. 

“I literally can’t stand you Sirius,” James fails to suppress laughter, “I will make him glasses tonight, but even without them, he’s pretty cool right?”

“He’s brilliant,” Regulus nods, “I love him, James, thank you.”

“He  _ is _ brilliant, what a perfect word,” James laughs, “I promise I’ll make him some glasses so he’s a seeing James Jr.”

Regulus sets the rock on the table and looks at the gifts he has yet to open, not knowing what to grab for next. Sirius, luckily, grabs one and hands it to him.

“This is mine,” He says, “I think you know kind of what it is.”

Regulus nods, as Sirius gives him the same theme of gift every year. He’s been painting him constellations since Regulus was 9, and it’s one of the only gifts he really gets from anyone. Well, not this year apparently.

“This year’s is good if I say so myself,” Sirius boasts.

“You say that every year,” Regulus answers.

“Ok, and are they all hanging up in your room?” Sirius points out, “Exactly.”

Regulus just rolls his eyes but opens the gift. Illustrated is the constellation Andromeda in the sky surrounded by other stars, Andromeda being both the star’s orientation and the outline of what the constellation makes. ‘Andromeda’ is written cleanly at the bottom in Sirius’ loopy handwriting. Regulus smiles at it, it’s very fitting for this year.

“Thank you, Sirius,” He looks up, “Very fitting.”

“It’s the only one of us I haven’t done, I thought this would be a good time.”

He sets the canvas down next to James Jr. and looks at the gifts and grabbing another one hesitantly. He still feels like this isn’t  _ for _ him, even if he knows it somehow is. Everyone silently staring at him is sending a chill up his spine and he doesn’t know how to feel about it, but he tries to ignore it as he opens the gift in his lap. 

He opens a pair of black socks, an  _ amazing _ embroidery of the Slytherin crest on the side. 

“I had to brush up on what the Slytherin crest looks like, the other ones I’ve made have all been Gryffindor,” Mrs. Potter tells him, “It was a welcomed change, though, added some excitement.”

“Thank you,” He smiles, shocked someone would spend that much time on something for him.

Mrs. Potter reaches over and orders the three gifts on the table, pointing at the one on the right, “Open that one first, I want these two to come last.”

James goes to ask, “Is that one-”

“James!” Sirius stops him, “Literally you’re so close, you’re right there just keep your mouth shut for two more minutes.”

“Ok ok ok,” James mimes zipping his own lips. Regulus sets down what’s in his hands and picks up the one Mrs. Potter pointed at, opening it to see two of his  _ favorite  _ piano collections that he didn’t take with him from Grimmauld. He flips through the pieces, all ones that he hasn’t seen since he left. 

“How did- How?” He asks her, and she laughs.

“A little bit of intel and some searching at that music shop off Diagon Alley,” She says, “You like obscure music.”

He nods, smiling at every name he recognizes. He looks over at her. “Thank you,” He says again, doing one last glance through before setting them on the table. He can feel James’ restraint from saying something about what he’s grabbing next, looking over to see him smiling ear to ear. 

“Please open it before James explodes,” Sirius chimes in, causing James to shoot him an annoyed look. Regulus listens anyway, opening a small box. He takes the top off and takes out a key, looking at it slightly confused. He  _ thinks  _ he knows what it is, but he doesn’t believe it.

“Even if you are off at school most of the time, you still need a house key,” Mrs. Potter says, confirming what he thought it was.

How does it  _ keep _ getting better? A  _ house key _ ? He didn’t even have a house key for his own house as a kid. It’s so validating, and he strongly wills himself  _ not _ to cry in front of all these people. 

“You live here now!” James laughs, “Yay!”

Regulus nods before smiling over at Mrs. Potter, because if he says something the lump in his throat will turn into tears. 

She gestures to the last gift on the table, and he sets the key back in its box before setting it on the table with his other things. 

He grabs the final gift, the box much more cubic than the last one he opened. He takes the wrapping paper off to another box, the tape on the top already cut. He opens it to see something stuffed in with some paper, presumably to cushion it. He moves the paper and takes out a wax letter sealer, looking at the bottom to see what is undeniably a Potter’s seal on it. He would recognize it anywhere from the letters that came flying into Grimmauld over the summers. 

“We figured since your brother uses James’ all the time, you would need your own,” Mrs. Potter explains, “So we know one of our sons is sending a letter home.”

And he’s crying. 

He turns to Mrs. Potter with tears in his eyes, who immediately pulls him into a hug upon seeing him. 

“I’m guessing you like it?” She quietly asks him, to which he nods.

“Thank you,” He whispers, not quite able to verbalize how grateful he really is. It’s a physical reminder that he  _ does _ fit in here, that he’s just as much of a family member as Sirius is. And the fact that she called him her  _ son _ fills him with more joy than he thinks he’s ever felt. The fact that someone could accept him like that with such open arms and love is still unbelievable to him. 

He sits back and wipes his eyes, looking down at the seal still in his hand. It still doesn’t feel real. Really, the entire last month doesn’t.

“Happy birthday, dear,” She rubs his shoulder, Regulus not being able to fit anything in before James pokes him. He turns around to be invited into yet another hug, James’ being much more aggressive. 

He hugs him back almost just as tight, finding comfort in being able to manifest all his excitement into squeezing James. James softly laughs, and Regulus is sure he notices. 

When James sits back Regulus can see that he’s absolutely beaming. Regulus glances over to Sirius, who is looking over at him pridefully. Regulus shoots him a half annoyed look.

“Hey, look and look off,” Sirius playfully bites back, “I’m just watching.”

Regulus rolls his eyes because he knows the big brother in Sirius is currently on an ego trip. Regulus just sits back on the couch, admiring what’s in his hand because there is just no way it’s real. Seals are the  _ mark _ of a family, and he barely got to touch his Black one if he wasn’t at school. He knows how much something like this symbolizes, and it quells any fears he had that he didn’t fit here.

Even if he hates the fact he just cried in front of all of them, he’d rather be nowhere else than surrounded by his new family.


	35. R.A.P

After he thanked Mr. and Mrs. Potter about 20 more times, James helped him take his stuff upstairs to his room, talking to him the entire time. James runs off into his and Sirius’ room once they’re done to make glasses for the little rock guy.

Regulus looks at the things sprawled out on his bed, fighting yet another round of tears. He pushes it away by looking around for something to put up Sirius’ painting with. When he doesn’t find anything he goes back downstairs where he knows he could find some nails. 

He reaches the bottom of the stairs to see Mrs. Potter standing in the kitchen, smiling when she sees him come down the stairs.

“Regulus dear,” She walks up to lean against the counter, “Come, I have something else for you.”

Something  _ else _ ?

He walks up to the other side of the counter hesitantly, and she holds out a small wrapped box and an envelope to him. 

“This is just from Fleamont and me, specifically don’t tell Sirius about it,” She quietly says to him, “We have a plan to surprise him with something similar on his birthday.”

“So don’t tell James either?” Regulus asks as he takes what’s in her hands, knowing the answer.

“Exactly,” She laughs, “Oh, and did you come down here for something?”

“A nail,” He tells her, “For the canvas.”

“I’ll come and help you with that in a little bit,” She assures him, “Magic will be easier.”

He nods, hesitating a moment, “Thank you- for everything.”

“Of course dear,” Mrs. Potter gives him a soft smile, “You deserve every bit of it. Now run off before one of them comes down here and you have to explain that.”

He nods again before walking back up to his room, shutting and locking the door behind him so James doesn’t come barging in. He moves everything so he can take a seat on his bed. He chooses to open the card first, carefully taking it out of the envelope, he sees it’s just a generic birthday card similar to the one Andromeda got him. But, once again, when he opens it there’s nothing but Mrs. Potter’s small handwriting on the inside. However, her’s fills both sides. 

_ Regulus, _

_ Goodness, where do I even start, dear? When you and your brother showed up a month and a half ago, I was sure you were the timidest and quietest boy I had ever met, nothing like neither Sirius nor James. You were pale as a ghost with that huge cut on your cheek, and I swore your feet were going to fall right out from under you. Your brother spoke for you, and you would barely look in my direction. And that was alright, because even if you had never said a word to me, you were more than welcome nonetheless. _

_ Not even two months later I am thrilled I get to have such a wonderful, respectful, sweet boy as my youngest son. The way I’ve watched you grow in such a short period of time makes me indescribably proud, it takes a lot of courage to do all you’ve pushed yourself to do. Leaving the house that you did is hard on its own, and to move in with strangers is even harder. But you’ve pushed past all of that, and I’m ever so proud of you. You’ve come to fit so perfectly in our family, and I’m going to miss the beautiful piano music as I clean the house when you go off to school.  _

_ I believe I told you this the second day you were here, but I mean it when I say you’re a son to me. It doesn’t matter how all of this happened, you’re a Potter now, and I never want you to believe you don’t belong here. You do, blood or not, and I wouldn’t wish it to be any other way. As I’ve always told your brother, you’re always welcome home. I mean it, always. _

_ Happy Birthday, and I hope we’ve been able to make today special for you. _

_ Love you so much, _

_ Mrs. Potter _

Regulus is practically sobbing by the time he finishes the letter, wiping his eyes as he beams down at the card. He has genuinely never felt  _ so goddamn loved _ in his  _ life _ , and he still has the box in his lap. He sets the card in front of him, leaving it open so he can glance up at it and remember how he didn’t make that up in his head.

He picks up the box and carefully tears off the wrapping paper, revealing a box similar to the one the key came in, only smaller and rectangular. He takes off the lid to see a small, straight black pendant on the end of a chain. He takes it out of the box, the chain being a decent length. Even with his vision blurred by tears, he can read the small engraving on the pendant. 

‘Regulus A. Potter’

If he wasn’t literally sobbing before, he is now. He closes his fist around it, still absorbing the visual of seeing his name next to anything else other than Black. He loves it, it’s so much prettier that way.

A knock on his door is followed by Mrs. Potter’s voice, “Mind if I come in, dear?”

Regulus gets up and unlocks the door, opening it before walking back to sit on the bed. Mrs. Potter pushes the door open, smiling when she sees he’s opened what she gave him. She shuts the door behind her before walking over and moving a couple of things out of the way so she can sit in front of him. 

“Do you like it?” She asks hopefully, to which he immediately nods.

“I love it,” He says, still looking down at the pendant in his hand.

“Here, let me put it on for you,” She offers, holding out her hands to take it from him. He hands it to her, moving forward slightly to let her clasp the necklace around his neck. He looks at it again once she’s done before looking up at her, vision still blurred from tears.

“Thank you.”

“How was today, dear?” She asks, “Did we do a good job?”

“An amazing one,” He nods, “I just- yeah, it was amazing.”

“You just what?” She softly inquires.

“I’ve never really celebrated my birthday before,” He tells her, saving the details of what he normally does.

“I’m really happy you could celebrate it with us,” She rubs his knee, “I hope we made it worthwhile.”

He nods again, wiping his eyes in an attempt to look like a little bit less of a mess. 

“Now,” Mrs. Potter gets up and takes the canvas off the bed, “Where on the wall should this go?”

Regulus gets up and walks over to the grid he has set up and picks the spot, Mrs. Potter hanging it up there for him.

“Does that look right?” She looks over at him, and he nods. “Perfect.”

The doorknob shakes, catching both their attentions. “Reg Reg Reg,” James says, “I have glasses!”

Regulus walks over and unlocks the door, James hearing the click and opening it himself. 

He holds up a small pair of circular glasses formed out of some wire, “Look!”

Regulus softly laughs at James’ extreme excitement over these glasses for his rock look-alike, Mrs. Potter making her way towards the door.

“I’ll leave you both to that,” She laughs, “Goodnight, boys.”

Regulus smiles at her, and James waves, “Bye Mum!”

She walks out and shuts the door behind her, James already grabbing the rock and sitting on Regulus’ bed. He checks that they fit right before looking up at Regulus, “Do you have tape?”

Regulus goes into one of his drawers and takes out clear tape, handing it to James. James tapes on the glasses to the rock, turning it around for Regulus to see. 

“He’s perfect now,” Regulus tells him, James smiles pridefully before getting up and setting it on the dresser next to the picture of him, Regulus, and Sirius. 

“I really like that picture,” James points out, “You should put more pictures in here, didn’t you just get a whole bunch?”

“I prefer them in here,” Regulus says, holding up the photo album Andromeda gave him as he takes a seat on the bed.

“Wait wait, I want to see some of those,” James walks over and sits next to him. Regulus trusts him enough to just hand it over, letting him look through it himself. The worst he will have to do is explain what formal dress looks like, it’s nothing bad.

He stops on the first page, a picture of Regulus as an infant being held by Andromeda. “I’m guessing that’s you as a baby?”

“Mhm,” Regulus nods.

“You were a small baby, my God,” He comments, flipping through a few pages before stopping on another one of just Regulus and Sirius. “Is he missing a front tooth?”

Regulus nods, watching James marvel at a tiny Sirius without one of his front teeth. He goes back to flipping through, skipping some of the boring ones of them all dressed up and practically stone-faced. Which, in reality, is a lot of them. He pauses a moment on a couple of the happier ones, admiring them before moving on.

He stops at the last photo, of Regulus, Sirius, Narcissa, and Bellatrix before they had left this summer. He flips between the last page, of him and Nymphadora, and that one a couple of times before looking up at Regulus, pointing at the family photo.

“Are you sure that’s you?” James asks, causing Regulus to raise an eyebrow in confusion. “Like, you look so different.”

“It was probably two months ago,” Regulus says, very confused about how he could look any different in such a short amount of time. 

“Yeah, I know, you just look different,” James pauses a moment, “Like good different, though, not bad different.”

“I would hope,” Regulus says before getting up and starting to take things off of his bed and set them in another appropriate location. James continues to study a couple of more photos as he does.

A couple of knocks at the door catches both of their attention, the person on the other side not waiting for permission to open the door and come in. It’s Sirius, of course. 

“Wow, you two are hanging out without me?” Sirius smiles, taking a seat next to James, “What’re you looking at?”

“Reg’s photo album,” James answers, “It’s got a lot of photos in it.”

“That’s what those are for,” Sirius laughs, leaning over James’ shoulder, “Any good ones?”

“I like the ones of you two as like, toddlers,” James says, flipping back to the beginning, “Oh, and this one of you missing a front tooth.”

“I actually was missing both at once as a kid,” Sirius tells him, “I refused to smile with my teeth until at least one grew in because it looked so stupid.”

“I’m so mad you don’t have pictures of that,” James says as he continues to flip around in the book. As Regulus continues to straighten things out, he hears someone come back up the stairs and knock on the door before opening it. 

Mrs. Potter peeks her head in and holds out a small gift bag, the pastel green color almost immediately cluing him in on who  _ may _ have sent that. Although, his guess is unlikely. 

“This came for you, Regulus,” Mrs. Potter tells him, and Regulus walks over to grab it from her.

“Thank you,” He says, and she smiles at him before shutting the door and heading back downstairs. 

“Who sent you that?” James immediately questions, leaning over to look at what is in his hand as Regulus walks over to stand next to the bed. 

Regulus shrugs as he takes the card, or rather a piece of paper, out of the bag. It’s a short note, written in handwriting he can easily identify. 

_ Hey Reggie! _

_ I have more than just this, but it’ll have to wait for the first day so my parents don’t get suspicious. Shhh! _

_ Happy Birthday! Can’t wait to see you! _

_ ~ Cynthia  _

He smiles down at the short note, pulling it away from James who gets up to read over his shoulder. 

“Why can’t I see who it is?” James whines, “Please?”

“No,” Regulus firmly denies, putting the card back into the bag and setting it off to the side. He’ll open it later, he’s sure it’s a small assortment of candies he’s mentioned he likes.

“Which one of your friends is sending you anything?” Sirius questions, leaning back on his hands, “I thought you were not writing anyone.”

“I haven’t,” Regulus says. Cynthia is a little bit of an off-limits conversation, not because there’s anything sensitive, but just because he wants to keep his close friends to himself without hearing Sirius and James’ opinion on it.

“So who wrote you?” Sirius asks again.

“No one,” Regulus maintains.

“I’ll find out eventually,” Sirius rolls his eyes, dropping the subject. James, however, continues to question him.

“What did they send?” James leans against the foot of the bed.

“Nothing,” Regulus shakes his head. 

“Come on!” James smiles, “I don’t judge! I want to know about like, I don’t know, your life!”

Regulus shakes his head, the door opening and saving him from having to say more. Mrs. Potter leans in again, a box with a letter tied on top in her hand.

“More came for you, Regulus,” She holds out what she’s holding, and he walks over and takes it. “Also, what are you two doing in here? Are you being annoying?”

“No, we’re not,” James assures her, “We’re spending time together, everything is alright.”

“Why do I not trust you?” She looks at Regulus, “Do you want them to leave?”

Regulus shrugs, wanting to read this letter, which is surely from Narcissa, and look at what Cynthia sent him in peace. He doesn’t explicitly nod, but Mrs. Potter understands regardless.

“Go sit in your own room, you two,” She gestures for them to come out into the hallway, “Leave Regulus be, he’ll be here in the morning.”

James gets up, Sirius following. “Ok ok,” James sighs, more directed at his mother. He smiles back at Regulus, “Goodnight Reg!”

“Goodnight,” Regulus replies, watching James wave as Mrs. Potter ushers him out the door. She doesn’t say anything to Regulus, just smiling at him before shutting the door to leave him alone. 

He sits back on his bed and starts to open up Narcissa’s letter and gift, already kind of knowing what she sent. It’s the same every year from her, and he is always happy with it.

Although, this year she’s got some tight competition.


	36. Not a Potter

“Come on, boys!” Mrs. Potter yells up the stairs. Regulus pulls on a shirt, tucking the chain into it before straightening out his hair enough that it looks half decent. He grabs the small bag of galleons he’s designated for shopping today and puts them in his pocket as he heads downstairs. 

He’s the first one down there out of the three of them, Mrs. Potter smiling at him as he reaches the bottom of the stairs.

“At least someone is on time,” She sighs before leaning to yell up the stairs again, “Come on, we’re leaving!”

“Hold on!” James yells down the stairs, a moment before their door loudly opens as Sirius makes his way down the stairs. He ruffles Regulus’ hair as he walks by, Regulus not getting a chance to respond before he hears something slam upstairs. 

“James, what are you doing?” Mrs. Potter asks, James slurring an intelligible response. 

“He lost his glasses,” Sirius tells her, “He’s desperately trying to find them but he’s also blind because he can’t find his glasses.”

“Of course he has,” She sighs before going upstairs, scolding him as she walks in the room to help.

“Why aren’t  _ you _ helping?” Regulus asks him, and Sirius laughs.

“I like to see him struggle,” Sirius glances up the stairs, “Do you know  _ how _ blind James actually is? He’d slam into a tree in an open field.”

Mrs. Potter and James come back down the stairs, James notably with his glasses on. 

“Guess what Sirius?” He says as he reaches the bottom of the stairs after his mother, “We found them.”

“I didn’t realize,” Sirius deadpans, James just laughing and walking over to hang on Sirius.

“Are you walking around with us Mum?” James asks. 

“Of course I am,” She answers, starting to walk towards the floo in the living room, “I am  _ not _ letting the three of you walk around a busy Diagon Alley by yourselves, I trust you but not that much.”

“Please?” James begs, “We’ll be  _ fine _ , there are 3 of us! And we’re not kids!”

“I’m not budging on this, James,” She maintains, leaning down to grab the floo powder, “Keep asking and I’m not going to let you out of my sight at all.”

“Fine fine,” James concedes, “Am I going first?” 

“Mhm,” She holds out the small pot of floo powder, “And for the love of God, James, enunciate please.”

“I will I will,” He assures her, taking a handful of floo powder and stepping into the fire. He holds his hand up and throws it down, but not before saying.

“Diagon Alley!”

***

After somehow being there for half an hour, they’ve  _ barely  _ gotten any of the things they need. They’ve visited Gringotts and the cauldron shop, and that’s it. This is Regulus’ least favorite experience, with all these people bustling from store to store  _ God _ knows who is in this crowd. But he assures himself it’s fine, and that he’s with people who wouldn’t let anything happen.

“I think Flourish and Blotts next, boys?” Mrs. Potter asks as they walk out of Potage's Cauldron Shop, since, for some reason, Slughorn has asked them all for new Cauldrons. 

“That sounds good,” James nods, heading in the direction of the shop. Mrs. Potter walks behind all three of them, a soft hand on Regulus’ shoulder.

As they’re walking, a girl with bright ginger hair comes running up to Sirius. 

“Sirius!” She smiles, Sirius stopping to give her a hug, “It’s great to see you!”

“You too, Lily,” Sirius answers. The girl, presumably Lily, starts to walk next to him, paying no mind to James. 

“Where’s Remus? I haven’t seen him today,” Lily asks.

“The full is tomorrow,” Sirius replies, his voice hushed so it’s likely only the group of them can hear it.

“Oh,  _ oh _ ,” She realizes, “That’s not great is it?” 

Sirius shakes his head, “Tomorrow is going to be horrible.”

“No kidding,” She sighs, “Anyway, where are you guys headed?”

“Flourish and Blotts,” He tells her, “Although- Wait.” He stops and turns around, standing outside the window of Scribbulus Writing Instruments, “Mrs. Potter?” 

“Yes, dear?” She asks. 

“I don’t want to hold all of you up, but can I go into Scribbulus to grab a couple of quills?” He asks, “I don’t really have any, I can catch back up.”

“I’d rather you not go alone,” She pauses a second, “James, Regulus, will you both be alright if you go on your own while I stay with Sirius? It won’t take long.”

“We’ll be fine!” James assures her, gesturing for Regulus to follow him, “Come on, Reg, we’re being independent.”

Mrs. Potter rubs his shoulder, causing him to look over at her. “You’re alright with that?”

He nods, and she lets go of his shoulder. 

“Be good, boys, don’t let James do anything stupid, Regulus,” She tells them, starting to head into the store with Sirius.

“I won’t,” He gives her a small smile before heading off with James. Lily has already walked off and is presumably already there because they don’t see her the entire way to the shop.

“Have I ever told you about Lily?” James asks as they head inside, Regulus shaking his head. “Oh my God,  _ never? _ I’ll have to fill you in on that. Now, what do we need?” 

James looks between the list in his hand and the list in Regulus’, dragging him over to a less crowded bookshelf. 

He mutters the name of what he’s looking for under his breath, Regulus watching as his hand cards through books.

Regulus gets scared stiff when an extremely forceful hand grabs his shoulder, assuredly  _ not _ Mrs. Potter. He doesn’t have to turn around to find out who it is.

“Regulus,” His mother’s voice hisses from behind him, causing him to completely freeze. He sees James turn out of the corner of his eye, his face switching from surprise to defiance. 

“Why are you touching my brother?” He asks, annoyed, “That’s a little weird.”

He might as well be able to see his mother’s face twist into one of sharp disgust, “I do believe this boy is a Black, not a  _ Potter _ .” She spits out the word ‘Potter’ in a tone laced with venom. 

“I think he lives with me, though,” James replies, “So if I’m not wrong, that makes him my brother.”

James turns back to what he was doing, reaching up for a book.  _ Huge _ mistake, as his mother takes her free hand and grabs his wrist before he can move away. He tries to pull back, but Regulus knows his mother’s grip is tight. She pulls him in closer.

“You have  _ no  _ right to speak to me that way,” She threateningly whispers, “You understand?”

“Uh, uh,” James stares at her in fear, glancing over to Regulus. Regulus tries to somehow telepathically tell him just to agree because he wants  _ out _ of this shop, but James clearly isn’t thinking straight. 

“Hey,” A voice calls, catching the attention of both James and Regulus’ mother, “What’s going on over here?”

“I don’t believe this is any of your business,” His mother calmly tells them as she lets go of James, but not Regulus. 

“Lily,” James breaths out, looking between Regulus and his mother. Lily, who he assumes the voice was, catches on and he hears her walk up. He feels someone grab onto his wrist and reach around and grab James. She drags them off, his mother’s hand falling down off his shoulder.

He doesn’t really know what’s happening as he gets dragged out of the shop and down to where Sirius and Mrs. Potter are. He’s still in a panicked shock that doesn’t let him say anything, although James is rambling beside him. Of course, this happened, of course of course of course. 

Scribbulus is much less crowded, but that doesn’t help the crawling feeling of anxiety that’s spread from his shoulder to his entire body by the time they get there. 

“What are you- Why- What happened?” Mrs. Potter immediately questions, walking up to meet Lily halfway. Lily passes over both of them to her, Mrs. Potter immediately wrapping an arm around a stunned Regulus. 

“I found them in a particularly concerning scenario with someone I didn’t recognize,” Lily tells her, “I thought I’d bring them to you.”

“Thank you, dear,” She says, still hesitant, “Who? And what?”

“I’m not quite sure, so I’ll let James explain,” She replies, tone unwavering despite what just happened. 

“Alright, thank you again,” Mrs. Potter sighs, “If you have more to do, I don’t want to keep you.”

“I probably should go so I don’t take forever,” Lily leans over to look at Sirius, “Bye Sirius, I’ll see you tomorrow.”

“Seeya, Lily,” Sirius bids goodbye halfheartedly, and Lily waves before rushing back out of the store. 

“Let’s get out of here first, then I’ll ask you what happened,” Mrs. Potter says, ushering the group of them out. James wastes no time walking up next to Sirius, starting to tell him what just happened. Mrs. Potter doesn’t let go of Regulus, which he  _ greatly  _ appreciates, even if it’s a little overstimulating. He’ll take skin-crawling over panicking every day. 

“You’re fucking kidding me?!” Sirius exclaims in response to what James is telling him.

“Sirius,” Mrs. Potter goes to scold him, but Sirius cuts her off.

“I’m sorry, but  _ my mother _ was there,” Sirius looks back at her, and Mrs. Potter changes her tune. 

“Excuse me?” She shakes her head, “No no no, that’s completely unacceptable.” 

Mrs. Potter directs them off to the side, away from the traffic flow of the busy strip. 

“She came out of nowhere,” James immediately starts to explain, “Put a hand on Regulus, so  _ I  _ asked her what she was doing, and she grabbed me-”

“She laid a hand on both of you?” Mrs. Potter asks, her tone the angriest that Regulus has  _ ever  _ heard it.

“And she scolded me about talking back or something, I wasn’t really listening,” James continues, seemingly oddly unfazed, “And then Lily came and took us, and now we’re here.” James looks down at the wrist that got grabbed, holding it up, “See?”

Mrs. Potter reaches out to grab and examine James’ red wrist, but Regulus knows it won’t bruise. Her grip was tight, but his mother isn’t stupid, she wouldn’t leave a long-lasting mark on him.

“That is more than unacceptable,” She fumes, dropping his wrist, “Under  _ no _ circumstances should anyone, especially her, lay a hand on  _ any _ of my kids.”

“Mum,” James stops her, “We’re alright, it’s fine.”

“James, that’s not fine,” She argues, pausing and taking a deep breath before looking over at Regulus, “Are you alright, dear?”

He gives her a small nod, his head still swimming with what happened earlier. 

“I’m so sorry, I shouldn’t have let you go alone,” She sighs, “I had a feeling that wasn’t smart, that’s my fault.”

Silence falls over them for a moment before James speaks up, “What now?”

“I’m not quite sure,” She replies, “We don’t really have the time to go home, you go back tomorrow.”

“Yeah,” James agrees, “We don’t need too much more, do we?”

“Let me see,” She holds out her hand, taking the list from James. She looks it over and sighs, “We have a decent amount more, but it’s fine.”

“I think we’ll be fine,” James takes the list back. 

“Regulus, are you sure you’re alright?” Mrs. Potter asks again, and he looks over when he nods this time. He just wants to get done so they can go back home.

“Alright, if you’re sure,” She gestures for Sirius and James to walk in front, “Let’s finish up.”

***

Regulus is the first to floo back, and he wastes no time heading upstairs to his room. He shuts the door behind him and sets his things down by his bed before sitting down and letting out a sigh of relief. 

He physically shakes his hands in an attempt to shake out the feeling of anxiety that’s been building for the last hour, letting the silence sink in. Today was  _ not _ what he was expecting it to be. He never thought it was going to go well, but he was hoping maybe that wouldn’t happen.

Someone knocks on his door, the knock being soft enough that it’s probably Mrs. Potter.

“Come in,” He says, pulling himself up to sit on the bed.

The door opens and Mrs. Potter walks in, shutting the door behind her. “How are you doing, dear?”

He shrugs, and she walks over to sit on the bed in front of him. 

“I’m sorry about what happened today,” She puts a hand on his knee, “I knew letting you go off on your own was not wise, I had a bad feeling about that.”

“It’s alright, you didn’t know,” He shakes his head.

“Regardless,” She sighs, “Aside from that, are you packed and everything for tomorrow?”

He nods. 

“Perfect,” She smiles, “I trusted you were, the other two, on the other hand, I’m sure are not ready.”

“They’re not,” He lets out a small laugh, and she jokingly rolls her eyes.

“Well, I’ll be sure to yell at them about that, because I’d rather not be late,” She says, although she doesn’t get up, “How are you feeling about going back?”

He just shrugs, because he hasn’t really thought about it yet. He doesn’t want to, it’s going to be worse than it normally is, and he’s well aware of that. So, he’d rather  _ not _ think about that transition.

“Not quite sure?” She asks, and he nods. “That’s fine, no need to know right now. I’m going to scold James and Sirius into packing, dinner might be a little later tonight, so you’re free to grab something to snack on if you’d like.”

“Ok,” He nods, and she smiles at him before getting up and heading out, silence falling over the room again. He sighs, looking at what he has left to stuff into his trunk. Reluctantly, he decides to do it now rather than later, pulling his almost completely packed trunk out from under his bed.

He’s not ready for this year.


	37. Reggie!

Regulus lands up on the roof, following James, and props his broom so it doesn’t slide down. He looks up at the crystal clear sky, the moon shining bright against the rest of it. He takes his seat next to James, who is already laying down.

“So Reg,” James looks over, “How’re you feeling about tomorrow?”

Regulus lets the question sit for a minute before answering, “I’m not sure.”

“Talk me through it,” James replies, “Like, tell me what’s going through your head about tomorrow, I’m interested.”

Regulus shrugs, “It’s a lot, you don’t have to hear it.”

“I want to,” He counters, “I’ve heard from Sirius all about how he feels, it’s your turn.”

“I don’t know,” Regulus sighs, “It’s- different.”

“Different how?”

“My friends, well, ‘friends’,” He puts air quotes around ‘friends’, “They all probably don’t like me.”

“Why wouldn’t they like you?” James questions, “Aren’t they your _ friends _ ? Isn’t that how that works?”

Regulus shakes his head, “Not really, not for me.”

“Why?”

“My friends- most of them,” Regulus hesitates, “They’ve definitely heard what happened, and they probably don’t like it.”

“So they’re going to not like you?” James puzzles, “That’s horrible, I literally couldn’t imagine that. Friends are like, really important, they’re not real friends if they leave you.”

Regulus pauses a moment, looking for what to say to get James to understand. But he knows that he won’t because James doesn’t really know how different the other side of the coin is.

“It doesn’t matter,” Regulus brushes him off, “It is what it is.”

“It shouldn’t be,” James sighs, “Well, what about everything else? Are you looking forward to going back to school?”

Regulus shakes his head. This conversation isn’t going in a great direction.

“Wait, why?” James asks, confused, “Going back is so fun.”

Regulus just shrugs and shakes his head again. 

“What’re you worried about?”

“It’s nothing,” Regulus says, looking back up at the sky. James doesn’t stop pushing, though.

“No, I don’t think it is,” James sits up, “What’s up? What’s worrying you?” 

Regulus hesitates, “People don’t really like me.” 

Why did he just tell him that?  _ Why  _ on Earth would he tell James that?

“Woah woah, back up,” James stops him, although he wasn’t planning on saying more, “How could people  _ not _ like you?”

“Welcome to pureblood Slytherins,” Regulus simply says. 

“I might not be able to fight, but I will kick someone’s ass if they bother you,” James threatens, “You’re so- unproblematic, I don’t get how anyone could have a problem with you.”

Regulus smiles at the sentiment because as much as he doesn’t want to be protected, the concept that someone cares that much is a nice feeling. Although, he doesn’t want to unpack all of his school issues with James the  _ night _ before he goes back. 

“I have a feeling you don’t want to talk about that,” James lays back down, and Regulus nods. “You know about Remus, right?” 

“Like what he is?” Regulus clarifies.

“That’s a yes, you do,” James says, “Don’t tell Sirius I talked to you about this, he gets very protective.”

“Wouldn’t dream of it.”

“Perfect,” He sighs, “Well, the full moon is tomorrow night, as you can probably like, see in the sky. And Remus is always really really sick the day of, and I’m worried about having to traverse the platform with him like that. Especially because he’s like, passed out before. Now  _ that  _ would be a nightmare.”

“Is that why Sirius is stressed?” Regulus asks.

“Oh yeah, I accidentally brought it up when we got home and he went into protective boyfriend overdrive,” James groans, “Has he  _ always _ been like that?”

Regulus nods, “With me? Always.”

“Eh, I mean, I guess that makes sense,” James shrugs, “I just can’t  _ wait _ to watch that manifest tomorrow.” 

Regulus lets the silence sit for a moment, although with James he knows that won’t last long.

“Soooo,” James smiles, “Are you excited to see who sent you that letter on your birthday?” 

“James,” Regulus half-warns.

“Come on,” James whines, “You can tell me! Sirius isn’t here, it’s just me, and you really want to tell me!” 

Regulus sighs, fighting the smile that threatens to creep across his face, “Yes, I am, no, I’m not telling you who it is.”

“Aww,” James laughs, “Well, I’m happy you’re excited, but I really want to know who this person is. You know who  _ my _ friends are.”

“Because they’re my brother and his boyfriend,” Regulus points out, “And the other one, whatever his name is.”

“Peter,” James tells him, pausing for a second as he likely thinks of something more to talk about, “Oh oh, Lily, have I ever told you about Lily?”

“No,” Regulus shakes his head. This is the second time he’s told James that today, but it wouldn’t be James if he remembered. 

“What a perfect time to tell you then,” He laughs, “So, first of all, she’s actually the love of my life…”

***

He runs through the barrier of Platform 9 ¾, the platform already bustling with first years worried about making the train on time. They’re early, of course, because Mrs. Potter would never let them be late anywhere. 

Someone puts a soft hand on his back, and he looks back to see Mrs. Potter had followed them through. He looks back at her confused, because why would she need to follow them?

“Of course I’m bidding you goodbye, dear,” She responds without him having to say anything, “Come on.”

He follows after James and Sirius, who are already scouting the platform for who is likely Remus.

Mrs. Potter walks off to them, giving both James and Sirius hugs and goodbyes. She walks back over to Regulus, pulling him into a hug as well.

“I’m going to miss you dear,” She says, stepping back to look at him, “Make sure you write, alright?”

He nods, “I will.”

“Wonderful,” She gives him another hug before waving back at the three of them as she walks off, “I’ll see you soon, boys!” 

“Bye Mum!” James yells goodbye as his mother walks back through the barrier, leaving the three of them standing next to one another. Regulus looks around for someone he knows, although that bracket is considerably smaller than James and Sirius’. He would rather not be seen with two 6th year Gryffindors if he can avoid it.

He’s surprised when he hears someone yelling his name, “Reggie!” 

He looks over to see Cynthia running up to him, giving him a huge hug that almost knocks him over. He just laughs and hugs back, noting how much different she looks from last school year. Not only is she taller, but her hair goes almost all the way down her back curled, and its color is lighter than the deeper strawberry blonde he remembers it being. It’s probably a product of being outside all summer, though.

“You got taller, how nice,” He comments, and she rolls her eyes as she steps back. 

“Are you saying I was  _ short _ ?” She playfully shoots back, “I’m as tall as you are!” 

“Don’t bring my height into this,” He stops her, glancing back to see Sirius and James staring at him admirably, “Where’s Turtle?”

“Well hello to you too,” She laughs, “This way, come on.”

He grabs his trolley and follows her off, hopefully out of both earshot and sightline with James and Sirius. She leads him over to her own trolley, a carrier sitting on top of all of her stuff. He crouches down so he can see the cat inside, sticking in his finger.

“Hi Turtle!” He smiles, letting the cat kiss his finger. He pets her the best he can through the bars.

“She got bigger over the summer,” Cynthia says.

“Bigger?” He asks, “She was big before.”

“You’ll see when we get on the train,” She tells him, “Which we should probably do now before it gets too full. Not to mention I’ve got lots to tell you.”

“I think I have more to tell you,” He counters, walking over to push his stuff next to her. 

“You definitely do,” She nods, the two of them head off to drop their stuff off. It involves a lot of slipping between frantic parents walking their kids around, but they manage not to hit anyone. He takes off the bag he’s taking with them, Cynthia doing the same. 

She hands him Turtle’s carrier, so he’s carrying both his own carry-on stuff and an extremely heavy cat, before she drags him off to get on the train. He just follows behind her all the way into a free train car. She sits on the left, and he sits across from her on the right, finally setting down Turtle. 

“She is so heavy,” He huffs, catching his breath after having to carry her all the way here. 

“I told you she got bigger,” She smiles, gesturing to the carrier, “Let her out, she probably missed you.”

Regulus opens the carrier and the cat immediately climbs up onto his lap, settling in without question. She’s a little too big to fit comfortably, but she seems to pay no mind to it. He pets through her soft fur, which Cynthia always keeps impeccably brushed.

“So,” She starts, drawing his attention up, “How was your summer?”

“I think you know,” He answers.

“I know  _ what _ your summer was, vaguely,” She admits, “Not  _ how _ it was.”

“Fair,” He sighs, “It was- a lot. But good, it was good.”

“That’s good, I’m glad,” She smiles, “Where  _ are  _ you, by the way? I know next to nothing because I just heard it eavesdropping.”

He looks towards the open door, and she pulls it closed. “I’ll leave the shade up incase Vaughn or anyone wants to join. But, continue.”

“The Potters,” He answers, his voice hushed despite the closed door, “A little awkward, but much better than home.”

“From what you’ve told me, anything is better than your house,” Cynthia points out, “Why there?”

“James Potter is my brother’s friend,” Regulus explains, “He brought me there, and I had nowhere else to go. I’m grateful they let me stay.”

“That had to be a little weird, considering you didn’t know them,” She says, “And considering Sirius did.”

“For a little while,” He agrees, “But they’re all very nice, accepted me like one of the family.” 

Her smile widens, “That’s great, Reggie. I couldn’t imagine living with  _ James Potter _ though, that’s got to be a nightmare.”

“I already lived with  _ Sirius Black _ ,” He argues, to which she nods. 

“Ok, ok fair,” She admits, “But anyway, with that much changing you have to have some good stories.”

“Tell me about your summer first,” He says, “You’ve told me nothing.”

“Oh yeah,” She realizes, “Well, I exaggerated a  _ little _ in saying I have a lot to tell you, I don’t really, but I got Prefect!”

“Congratulations,” He smiles.

“Thank you!” She smiles back, “But that also means I have to show kids to the Common Room, which will be fun.”

“Who is the other one?” He asks, and she shrugs.

“Not sure, probably Theo or Evan, something like that,” She says, “Slughorn nominated them, so I’m surprised you weren’t picked.”

He shakes his head, “I don’t really qualify, and I also don’t want it. I told Professor Slughorn that too.”

“Probably why he didn’t pick you,” Cynthia reasons, “Because he loves you, he would have pulled a couple of strings to get you in that position. But  _ talking to people _ isn’t your strongpoint, and that’s a  _ major _ part of prefect.”

“Oh shut up,” He softly laughs, careful not to disturb Turtle as he playfully kicks at Cynthia. 

“It’s true!” She laughs, looking over as the door to the compartment slides open.

“Hey losers!” Vaughn loudly greets, taking a seat next to Cynthia, “It’s been a while!” 

“It has,” Cynthia leans over and gives him a hug, “Did you say hi to Turtle?” 

“I’ve barely said hi to Reg,” He laughs, turning to look at Regulus, “Hi Reg!” 

“Hi, Vaughn,” Regulus waves, watching as Vaughn sets down his carrier, putting his stuff above their heads.

“Want me to put your stuff up here?” He asks, and both Cynthia and Regulus nod.

“Sure,” Cynthia answers, handing both hers and Regulus’ stuff up to him, “Thank you V.”

“No problem,” He smiles as he sits back down, opening the carrier, “Come out and say hello Princess.”

“I still can’t believe you named that snake  _ Princess _ ,” Cynthia comments.

“And I can’t believe you named your cat Turtle,” Regulus adds.

“Stop!” She laughs, “You say that like you don’t love Turtle to pieces, at least I don’t have a dwarfed snake.”

“Hey! Don’t make fun of Princess,” Vaughn exclaims as Princess climbs between his fingers, “She was  _ abused _ , that’s  _ mean _ .”

“What’s mean is that you named her Princess,” Cynthia maintains, “Imagine being you’re a snake, you’re supposed to be like- how long is she supposed to be?”

“60 centimeters,” Vaughn mutters in fake shame.

“60 centimeters!” Cynthia exclaims, “And instead you’re not even 30, and your name is Princess, how embarrassing.”

“Don’t listen to her Princess, you’re beautiful just the way you are,” Vaughn tells the snake on his hand.

Cynthia just rolls her eyes before looking over to the door, Regulus following her gaze. Standing in the doorway is none other than James, smiling at him. 

“Hi Reg,” He happily greets, looking over to Vaughn and Cynthia, “Hi Reg’s friends!” 

“Hello,” Cynthia politely greets.

“Hey,” Vaughn waves.

He looks back to Regulus, “Do you happen to have an extra quill on you?” 

He sighs, “Why would I?”

“You do.”

“I do,” He points up to his suitcase above him, and James takes it down from the rack and opens it, taking out the quill Regulus has in there. He shuts it and puts it back, going to leave. 

“Wait,” Regulus stops him, “Bring it back and don’t-.”

“I will!” He yells as he runs off, shutting the door behind himself. 

“What were you going to tell him?” Cynthia asks.

“Don’t keep visiting,” Regulus sighs, “That won’t go well for me.”

“No shit,” Vaughn dryly laughs, “James Potter? Talking to you? That’ll get you at the very least socially isolated.”

“I think I’m already there,” He mutters, leaning back in the seat.

“It’ll be alright, Reggie,” Cynthia consoles, “You’ve got us! Forget them, they won’t do anything to you anyway. As much as you’ll probably hate to hear it, no one  _ dares _ mess with a Black, no matter what happened.”

He shifts uncomfortably because this is the conversation he’s been trying to avoid. He doesn’t have that leverage anymore, and he knows people will find out where he’s been pretty quick, considering James can’t keep a secret for anything. 

“We’ll cross that bridge when we get to it,” She smiles, “Can I have my cat back?”

“No,” He curtly answers, continuing to pet Turtle. Cynthia sighs but walks over to sit next to him instead so she can also pet the cat. She brushes her dress over so she can pull her legs up onto the seat. She rests her head on his shoulder, to which he sighs.

“You can pretend to hate it,” She laughs, looking up at him, “But because I’m your favorite, I get a pass.”

He rolls his eyes but doesn’t say anything, going back to put his attention on Turtle rather than her puppy-dog eyes staring up at him.

“Exactly,” She says, looking back to Vaughn, “Alright V, your turn to tell us about your summer.”

“Oh cool,” He thinks for a moment, “What about I start with…”


	38. You’re My Favorite

The rest of the train ride is generally relaxed, Cynthia jumping between sitting next to him and next to Vaughn. Barty, unfortunately, visits a couple of times, throwing unwanted comments that were just a  _ little _ off at him. He chooses to play along, the last thing anyone wants is Barty Crouch Jr. against them.

The sorting and feast are much the same, clapping for the new Slytherins and ignoring the glares like daggers from several of his former friends. Remus wasn’t at the Gryffindor table, meaning Madam Pomfrey probably grabbed him before they got in here. It was probably smart because the glance Regulus got of him when retrieving his quill back from James told him Remus was  _ not _ doing well. Cynthia holds his attention well throughout dinner, keeping it away from everything else, including his panicked brother sitting two tables away. She’s good at that.

He’s making his way back to the Slytherin Common Room, unfortunately alone since Vaughn ran off and Cynthia has to lead the new First Years when he hears someone he was hoping wouldn’t talk to him.

“Hey Black!” Amias Avery yells from behind him. He doesn’t turn around, hoping maybe he’ll leave him alone. 

Instead, up on either side of him come both Avery and Mulciber, the former slamming his shoulder as he does. 

“So word says you’re not a Black anymore, Black,” Avery teases, “No hiding behind Mummy.”

“Where have you been hiding?” Mulciber maliciously asks.

Regulus says nothing, keeping his gaze locked forward and face stone cold. Eventually, they’ll leave him alone.

“You haven’t heard?” Severus Snape walks up behind him, leaning between him and Avery. 

“Enlighten us,” Avery smirks.

“A little birdie told me that it’s the Potter family,” Snape answers, “Big brother Sirius bring you there?”

Again, Regulus doesn’t answer.

“Not a lot to say?” Avery nags, “Always so silent, it’s almost as if you don’t like us.”

“Well, considering you’ve lost just about every friend you have, maybe our bad side isn’t one you want to be on, Black,” Mulciber crosses his arms, elbowing him.

Regulus wants to tell them to leave him alone, but he knows if he opens his mouth to say anything the words will immediately leave him. So he keeps his mouth shut.

“Come on, tell us something,” Avery prods, “If you want us to leave you alone, you have to say it.”

Regulus continues to not look at the conniving smiles on either side of him. They use this tactic all the time with him, and annoying as it is, it’s a complete trap. Either he’ll say it and they’ll laugh, or he won’t be able to and they’ll laugh. He’s better off walking back to his dorm with them nagging him. 

“Oi! You three going to leave him alone?” A familiar voice yells from somewhere behind him, “Or do I need to make you?”

“Big Emma, thinking she’s going to do something to us?” Avery turns around, but his eyes immediately widen, “Alright, we’re leaving, we’re leaving!” 

Avery and Mulciber rush ahead of him, Snape presumably falling back. Up beside him walks Emma, carrying nothing but a beater’s bat.

“Hello, Reg!” She smiles, “How’re you?”

“Is that-” He points at the bat, not finishing the sentence. 

“Yes, it is,” She laughs, “It got them away, right?”

“Why do you have it?”

“I’m putting it in my dorm,” She answers, “And using it to threaten assholes like them, it serves both purposes. Anyway, how have you been?” 

Regulus shrugs.

“Fair, that’s understandable,” She nods, “Are you ready for Quidditch? That’s the really important question, especially because guess who your team captain is?” She points to herself.

Regulus gives her a small smile. 

“That’s the spirit,” She looks back, apparently seeing someone she knows because she waves back, “Well, it was nice seeing you Reg, I’ll see you around!” 

Regulus gives her a small wave goodbye and she turns around, walking off to whoever she saw. Regulus manages to make it to the Common Room without getting harassed again, heading up to be the first one back in their dorms. Although, from the stuff out on the beds, it’s pretty clear a couple of them have already been here. 

Regulus takes the opportunity to set his things up while being the only one in the room. He sets the photo with his family on the nightstand, being that he didn’t bring the one of him, Sirius, and James. Regulus isn’t stupid, that would not be a good thing to have in a dorm  _ full _ of Slytherin purebloods. He sets out a few of his things, propping his trunk open so he can go in it if he needs. His part of the room is never really decorated, although he does set out Leo the Lion, the toy Nymphadora gave him as well. 

He leaves a few of the things he couldn’t leave back at the Potter’s but can’t set out in his bag, he’ll figure out what to do with them later. 

The moment the door opens is the moment Regulus decides he’s done, grabbing whatever book his hand hits first and sitting back on his bed. He catches a glance at the two new people who walked in: Evan and Ben. Both of them glare at him in disgust, but thankfully don’t say anything.

He hears his name a couple of times as they talk, and he knows they’re probably bad-mouthing him. He pulls the curtain to his bed shut, deciding if he can’t hear it then maybe it isn’t happening.

He’s only alone for about 5 minutes before someone ‘knocks’ on his curtain, and he opens it enough to see Vaughn smiling on the other side, one hand already intertwined with his snake. 

“Hey, Reg!” He takes a seat in front of them, “Why do you have the curtain shut? That’s so boring!”

Regulus doesn’t feel the need to answer that question.

“Ok, stupid question, but at least leave your curtain open,” Vaughn says, pulling it open for him, “What’re you reading?”

“Not sure,” He flips to the cover, which doesn’t have anything written on it, “Yeah, don’t know.”

“Well forget the book,” He says, “I think you should talk to me instead.”

“About what?” He asks, wondering what Vaughn is going to make him talk about.

“The entire train ride up I heard  _ one _ thing about your summer,” He says, “Tell me more.”

“Absolutely not,” Regulus shakes his head. He is  _ not _ telling Vaughn about how he enjoyed living at the Potter’s house while 2 other people are in the room who hate him for it. 

“Wow, you’re so nice,” He sarcastically replies, laughing, “Maybe later, but-” 

He’s cut off by the door opening, and both of them look over to see Cynthia standing in the doorway. 

“Hi!” She smiles, “Reggie, do you mind coming and helping me set up my stuff? I don’t want to do it alone.”

“Sure,” He gets up leaving Vaughn sitting on his bed.

“Guessing I’m not invited?” He asks, “Kidding, you two have fun, don’t-”

“Do  _ not _ say it V,” Cynthia firmly cuts him off, Regulus looking between them in confusion for what he could have said. He brushes it off, following her over to where her room is. 

“You get a room alone,” He comments as they walk in, “That’s nice.”

“Eh, I don’t know how I feel about it yet,” She says, pulling her trunk out from the wall and opening it, “Although I think I like it, it’s fun having other people in the same room but it gets a little annoying, you know what I mean?”

“I also live in a dorm,” He points out, “ _ And _ they don’t like me.”

“Oh yeah, say hi to Turtle,” She points to the bed, where Turtle is curled up and sleeping. Regulus takes a seat next to her and pets her as his greeting, letting her climb into his lap.

“How is she going to get down from here?” He asks, to which she holds up a  _ ramp _ , “You have a ramp for Turtle?”

“I have a ramp for Turtle,” She laughs, bringing it over to the other side of the bed and propping it up, “Stop looking at me like that! She can’t get up and down!”

Regulus just shakes his head and laughs, watching as Cynthia begins to take her stuff out. She takes out her radio first, though, the one she somehow smuggles to school every year. She turns on some music, just to have something playing in the background. Regulus just listens as she softly hums along to whatever is playing.

“So Reggie,” She says after a couple of minutes of sorting where things should go, “Tell me more about this summer.”

“What do you want to hear?” He asks, considering that’s a lot she isn’t updated on.

“I would say anything, but then you would tell me nothing,” She thinks a moment, “Let me in on how it’s like to live in the same house as James Potter.”

“He’s a lot like my brother,” Regulus starts, “Just louder, and oblivious. If it doesn’t hit him directly in the face, he doesn’t understand it.”

“Of course, he’s a Gryffin- wait,” She looks back at him, “You lived with  _ two _ Gryffindors this summer?”

“Four,” He corrects her, “James’ parents. Five if you count my brother’s boyfriend.”

“Holy Lord, that’s way too many,” She shakes her head, “That just sounds like far too much loud worthless conversation.”

“That’s really just James,” He says, “He can’t stand silence, he always has to be talking.”

“And you  _ lived _ with that? Comfortably?” She asks, and he nods. “More power to you, Reggie, I certainly couldn’t. It’s a little bit of the reason I’m excited I have my own room. That and I get to invite you over at abysmal hours of the night when I know you’re up.”

“Can’t wait,” He jokingly deadpans, and she laughs.

“You acting like you don’t like me is the funniest thing I’ve ever seen,” She comments, walking over to take a seat next to him, “When I know I’m your favorite.”

“You don’t have much competition,” He points out, to which she crosses her arms unamused. “I’m kidding, you’re my favorite.”

“That’s what I want to hear,” She smiles, wrapping her arms around his neck. He rolls his eyes but lets her hang on him for a moment before she looks up, her face  _ extremely _ close to his. She’s beaming at him, and for some reason, he doesn’t pull back. He just freezes, a strange feeling of almost  _ positive _ anxiety, if that even exists, taking over him. 

“You’re like a deer in headlights,” She laughs, playfully pushing his head back, “Don’t look so stunned, it’s just me.”

“My favorite?” He laughs, snapping himself out of whatever just happened.

“Exactly,” She gets up and walks over to the stuff she has yet to finish putting away, “Oh, how were my candy choices this year? Did you like it?”

“Mhm, you ask like I wouldn’t,” He comments, “You know every single one of my favorite candies,  _ in order _ .”

“I just have a good memory!” She playfully argues as she sets something on the dresser, “And it’s useful!” 

“You forgot how old you were on the train.”

“ _ That _ was a blonde moment, that’s different,” She laughs, “Sorry for  _ remembering _ things about you because I  _ care _ .”

He just rolls his eyes out of view of her.

“Where should I put Turtle’s bed?” She asks, looking around the room before looking back at Regulus. He points over to the empty corner by the window and Cynthia nods. “Good spot,” She comments as she puts it down. 

“She’ll probably stay on your bed anyway,” He says.

“Not if I kick her off she won’t,” Cynthia laughs, going back to set a few more things in order. The room falls back into a pleasant silence as she goes back to humming along to the music, occasionally singing a couple of the words. He wishes she sang more often, he likes listening to it, it just sounds nicely familiar.

“How nervous about your dorm room are you?” She asks as if it’s just a casual question, turning to face him.

He shrugs, not quite keen on talking about this right now.

“So that’s a yes, you’re really nervous,” She answers for him, taking a seat next to him on the bed, “What’re you thinking?”

“I have to sleep in a room with people who hate me,” He answers, “And Vaughn.”

“Theo doesn’t hate you.”

“He doesn’t  _ like _ me,” Regulus argues.

“Look, I’m not even kidding, they  _ do not _ matter,” Cynthia sits back on her hands, “If they have a problem with you, they have a problem with me. They’ll get over it eventually.”

“Hopefully,” He counters.

“Definitely,” She nods, “Hate to break it to you, Reggie, but you’re not a fun person to make fun of, you don’t give them  _ any  _ reaction.”

“Yet it still happens,” He quietly says, looking down at the hand that is mindlessly petting the cat in front of him. 

“Reggie,” She sighs, “I wish I could help, really, you don’t deserve that.”

“It’s fine,” He shakes his head, “You are helping.”

“How do you think I’m helping?  _ I _ don’t think I’m helping.”

“You’re here,” He looks over at her, “You’re talking to me, you didn’t leave.”

“I wouldn’t goddamn dream of it,” She assures him, smiling, “I’m not going anywhere, even if you  _ wanted _ me to.”

He smiles back, looking off elsewhere in the room. It’s comforting to know someones there for him, especially after the glimpse at how this year is going to go. If Cynthia turned on him,  _ that _ would probably kill him, as much as he hates to admit it.

“Stop being deep in thought,” She pokes him, “Now, what do we do next?”

“I’ve been doing the same thing since you brought me in here,” He says, glancing down at Turtle. 

“Do you want to play something?” Cynthia gets up and walks over to her trunk, “What about… Aw, you won’t like this option.”

“If you suggest Exploding Snap,” He threatens, laughing.

“Ok ok, I have a deck of cards,” She tosses him the deck of cards, which he manages to catch, and she walks over to sit all the way on her bed, “First, actually sit on the bed, second, pick what we’re playing.”

Regulus carefully moves to sit across from Cynthia, trying not to disturb Turtle. She’s definitely not moving, though, so that’s not very hard. He looks at the cards a moment before starting to deal them out.

“I’ll let you guess what we’re playing.”


	39. Small World

The next week and a half goes by, much how Regulus expected it to, with lots of annoying comments and pestering from almost every Slytherin pureblood. He’s been strategically avoiding James because _he_ does not understand that Regulus _cannot_ be casually seen with him. As much as he hates Sirius, at least he gets that. 

Today has been particularly bad as far as glares go, but he just has to get through one more class, and then they’re out for the weekend. Transfiguration, that’s easy, Cynthia and Vaughn sit on either side of him so he’s safe from having to sit next to someone he doesn’t know. He’ll take it.

He’s the first in the room, surprised to see Professor McGonagall talking to an oddly familiar student. James, of course, it’s James. 

“Mr. Potter, I have to teach a class now, come back later,” McGonagall waves him off.

“No, we have like 2 more minutes!” James protests. 

“I told you that you have until a student walks in,” She says, “Turn around.”

James looking back, his face lighting up when he sees Regulus, “Reg!”

Regulus waves at him. 

James looks to McGonagall, “No, it’s ok, it’s just Reg.”

“Mr. Black is a student, he counts,” She sighs, looking up at him, “Ignore Mr. Potter, come sit.”

Regulus walks up and sits in his seat, starting to take out his things, James slipping into the seat next to him.

“Hi Reg-”

“Mr. Potter,” McGonagall warns, “Leave Mr. Black alone.”

“Wait I have to ask him something,” James brushes her off, “Reg, you should come hang out with us this afternoon.”

Regulus raises an eyebrow in confusion as to what James means by that. 

“Well, you should come hang out with _me_ , because Moon- Remus and Sirius are probably going to be all boring,” James explains, “We have sweets too, I think you should join. Oh, and you’ll get to meet Peter.”

Regulus sighs, “I’m not doing anything better.”

“Yay!” James cheers, glancing back at someone presumably walking in the room, “I’ll let you in the Common Room at 7, bye Reg!” 

“Bye James,” Regulus waves as James rushes out the door. Regulus looks back to see Cynthia walking in the room, behind her a couple more Gryffindor kids. 

“There you are,” She smiles, taking a seat next to him, “You ran away from me.”

“I went from my last class to my next class,” Regulus says, “You started talking to someone.”

“God forbid I talk to people,” She laughs, “What did James want with you?”

“I’m apparently hanging out with him today,” He says, his voice quiet enough that no one else hears, even if they’re all Gryffindors. 

“That’s fun!” She starts to take her things out, “Was there a reason?” 

He shakes his head.

“Still fun,” She shrugs, “You get to get out more, see more people, right?”

“Whatever you say,” He jokingly rolls his eyes, looking over as Vaughn sits next to him.

“The cool one has arrived,” He boasts as he sits, putting his bag on the desk.

“What do you mean? Reggie has been here,” Cynthia shoots back, smiling over at Vaughn.

“Woah, Claire, calm down,” He laughs.

Cynthia groans, “I was so hopeful we were done with the Claire thing. I want to make this the year when V stops using his nickname for me and Reggie uses his nickname for me more.”

“Maybe that’s because you-”

“Don’t say it V,” Cynthia threatens, “I will never speak to you again.”

“Ok ok,” He stifles a laugh, “Claire.”

“V!” She reaches around the back of Regulus to hit Vaughn, who is finding all of this hilarious.

“Ms. Greengrass,” McGonagall sighs, “Let’s _not_ attack Mr. Bulstrode, yes?”

“Sorry!” She jumps to apologize, quickly sitting back to face front. She shoots an aggregated glance at Vaughn, who just laughs.

The doors behind them shut and McGonagall takes her spot at the front of the room. 

“Alright class, open up your books to page 36…”

***

Regulus walks up to the Gryffindor painting, seeing James standing outside. The second he catches sight of Regulus he smiles.

“Hey Reg!” He greets, “I’m glad you didn’t stand me up.”

“I would never,” Regulus jokingly gushes, letting James relay the password to the painting before it swings open. He leads Regulus inside, talking to him about something he can’t hear as they go up the stairs and into his dorm. 

Remus and Sirius are laying together, a girl, who he thinks is Lily, sitting next to the bed on a chair. There’s another boy, presumably Peter, sitting on the bed next to James’. He pretty easily identifies the messy bed as the one James has. 

“Our guest is here!” James cheers as he walks in grabbing Regulus’ hand and dragging him over to sit on his bed. 

“Wait, Reg,” Sirius calls, “Come meet Lily.”

“He doesn’t have to come over here,” Lily brushes him off, waving at Regulus, “Hi, I’m Lily.”

He waves back, feeling as if he’s forgotten his own name. He _hates_ meeting people. 

“And that’s my brother Regulus for you,” Sirius sighs, “You have to _introduce yourself_ , Reg.”

“Lay off him,” Lily chides, “It’s nice to meet you, Regulus.”

He gives her a nod before looking back to James, who is not only beaming but totally blushing. 

“Do you want me to-” Regulus points to the curtain.

“No no, it’s fine,” James assures him, “I do have a question for you, though.”

“Oh no.”

“No it’s not bad,” James says, “Oh wait before I forget- Peter!”

“Hm?” Peter looks up at him.

“This is Regulus, Regulus, that’s Peter,” James introduces the two of them, who both settle for waving at one another. Peter goes back to what he was doing, and Regulus looks back at James. “Ok, my question.”

Regulus nods to tell him to go on, although he feels like he won’t like the direction this is going.

“Who is that girl from the Platform?” He asks eagerly, “The one I see you walk around with all the time?”

Regulus sighs, knowing he’s not getting out of telling James this time, “Cynthia.”

“Cynthia…” James encourages him to go on.

“Cynthia Greengrass?” Lily cuts in from across the room, “Sorry, I didn’t mean to interrupt, I just know her.”

Regulus looks back at her and nods. 

“Oh! _You’re_ the one she talks about,” Lily realizes, “That’s so funny, small world. I just didn’t know that boy who she always talks about was Sirius’ brother.”

Regulus looks back to James, a little embarrassed hearing that she _talks about him_.

“How long have you known her?” James asks. 

“Since first year,” He says.

James nods, “That’s cool, is she the one with the cat I saw on the train?”

He nods.

“What’s the cat’s name?”

“Turtle,” Regulus answers.

“Turtle?” James laughs, “What a name, Turtle the cat.”

“I told her that,” Regulus says, “She’s confident in her name.”

“That’s a big cat too,” He hesitates a moment, “Well, what else is new?”

Regulus shrugs, shaking his head. 

“Nothing? That’s so boring,” James says, “Although I don’t really have anything new either, so I can’t say much.”

Regulus turns around when he hears the door open, seeing two girls he doesn’t recognize standing in the doorway. 

“We’re having a party in here and we _weren’t_ invited?” The blonde one complains, one of her hands strategically behind her back.

“What makes you think we’re having a party?” Lily asks, “There are two guests, having _separate_ conversations.”

“Well, we are now!” The blonde holds up a bottle of what looks like Fire Whiskey.

“It’s been a week and you guys already have alcohol?” Remus laughs, “You guys are insane.”

“We’re fun!” She laughs, dragging in the other girl behind her. 

“I am _not_ getting my _younger brother_ involved in this,” Sirius sighs, “But I’m totally in.”

Regulus looks between everyone in the room, who is now staring at him. He has a feeling this is the part where he gets kicked out, considering whatever they’re doing probably _won’t_ involve him.

“Let Reg stay,” James chimes in, “He doesn’t _have_ to drink.”

“He will _not_ be drinking,” Sirius decrees, “I’m looking at you, Marlene.”

“I’m not forcing your baby brother to drink,” The blonde girl, presumably Marlene, looks over at Regulus, “Although, wait, how old are you?”

“15,” He answers quietly. 

“Sirius- he’s fucking 15, you made me think he was like 12,” Marlene looks back at Sirius, “He can-”

“He cannot,” Sirius stops her, “And I didn’t do anything like that, sorry you have a horrible gauge of how old people are.”

“You were drinking at _13_ ,” The other girl points out.

“Shh shh, don’t bring it up,” Sirius shushes her, “I’m not doing that to him.”

“You say that like Hogwarts doesn’t leak underage drinking,” Marlene argues.

“ _Why_ are you so heated about this?” Sirius questions, “Open the bottle already, Reg is not getting any.”

Marlene shields her mouth from Sirius and half whispers, “We’ll get him drunk first.”

“Marlene!” Sirius exclaims, “Open that bottle, and if you hand Reg a cup I’ll break your arm, come on.”

“Alright alright,” She opens the bottle and the other girl, who is holding cups, helps her fill one for everyone in the room except Regulus. Marlene and whoever is with her pull up to chairs next to Lily around Sirius and Remus’ bed. Regulus feels like he’s intruding, considering James is still sitting with him. 

“So Reg,” James starts, drawing back his attention back, “You’re getting the whole experience today.”

Regulus just nods, not quite comfortable with all the people in the room. 

“It’s just Dorcas and Marlene,” James assures him, “They’re cool.”

Regulus still doesn’t say anything, and James looks over Regulus’ shoulder before holding out his cup.

“Want a little?” He asks, and Regulus shakes his head. It probably would make him less anxious, but he’s not going to say yes. Not to mention Sirius would kill him.

“You’re a better person than I am,” James takes a sip from his cup, “I want to hear more about this girl, she seems cool.”

Regulus shrugs, “I guess she is.”

“Are you not that close to her?” He questions.

“I am,” Regulus simply answers. He doesn’t feel like talking about Cynthia right now, that’s a weird conversation.

“Ok, fine, we’ll talk about something else,” James sighs, “I will get that out of you eventually.”

“Not today.”

“Not today though,” James swirls his cup, “How about how me and Emma are planning on combining Quidditch practices?”

“You’re _what_?” Regulus asks,

“Mhm,” James nods, “Want to hear about it?”

“Sure,” Regulus shrugs.

“So, we’re not doing it all the time, but…”

***

Regulus walks back into the Slytherin common room, seeing Cynthia sitting with a book in the far corner of the room. She looks up when he walks in, happily waving him over. 

He walks over and takes a seat in front of her. 

“Hi Reggie!” She smiles, “I missed you!” 

“I was gone for an hour,” He says, “How did you miss me?”

“You were actually gone for an hour and a half, but I missed you because I _enjoy_ spending time with you,” She playfully argues, “One day that won’t surprise you.”

He doesn’t say anything, just shrugging in response. She tells him things like that a lot, and he’s learned no matter what he says she will always make it mushy. 

“Anyway, did you do anything fun?” She asks, putting a bookmark in what she’s reading.

“Just listened to James talk,” He says, “How spending time with him normally goes. Although, there were a lot of people there.”

“Who?”

“I’m guessing their friends because two of them brought Fire Whiskey,” He explains.

“Did you have any?” She asks.

He shakes his head, “Sirius would have killed me, _and_ you know I don’t really drink.”

“Don’t pull that one on me,” She laughs, “You _do_ drink, you just _pretend_ you don’t.”

“So let’s keep pretending,” He looks at the book in her hand, “What’re you reading?”

“Nothing fun,” She says, “The Defense Against the Dark Arts chapters for Monday.”

“The ones I won’t read?” He asks, smiling, “Are they interesting?”

“Well, to me yes, because I like the subject,” She says, “You’ll hate it no matter what it is.”

“Defense Against the Dark Arts is stupid,” Regulus crosses his arms, “We have a different teacher every year, it’s useless at this point.”

“Ok, but that doesn’t mean the _subject_ isn’t interesting,” She argues, “Regardless, would you like to come read with me?”

“Not the Defense book,” He says, “I’ll get something else and read with you.”

“I’ll be here,” She smiles, and Regulus gets up to head upstairs, “And grab Turtle!”

He just heads back up to his dorm, not even looking up at whoever is there as he grabs one of the books he’s been mindlessly reading. He heads over into Cynthia’s room, grabbing Turtle off the bed before heading back into the Common Room.

Regulus sets Turtle down next to Cynthia, taking a seat so he and Cynthia are back to back. She’s facing out, and he’s facing the wall, the way they always sit. It’s his excuse to sit facing the corner because that’s not generally socially accepted, and it’s enough contact to make Cynthia happy without making him uncomfortable.

Turtle climbs onto his lap, which he gladly accepts.

“Aww, Turtle,” Cynthia whines, “Can’t believe you love Reggie more than me.”

“I’m cooler.”

“Oh, you’re _cool_ now?” She asks.

“You said so,” He reminds her.

“What- Oh, yeah I did,” She laughs, “Well, you’re kind of cool, cool enough for Turtle apparently.”

“I’ll take it.”

“Hold out your hand,” She says, Regulus hesitating. “Just do it.”

He holds his hand out to the side and she drops a sugar quill in it. 

Regulus smiles down at the treat in his hand, moving to take the wrapper off, “Thank you, Thia.”

He might as well be able to hear her smile.

“You’re welcome, Reggie.”


	40. Homesick

It’s only the 3rd week of school and everything seems to just keep getting worse. It’s been more and more stupid comments, or stares, or questions from people he doesn’t know. All of the things Regulus  _ hates _ , not to mention he’s had his good handful of restless nights, so he’s practically a walking zombie. 

He keeps his eyes down as he walks across the courtyard, trying to get to Divination without facing any sort of trouble. Of course, that just seems impossible for him.

“Reg!” James yells from behind him, running to catch up, “Hey Reg.”

“Not now,” He brushes him off, barely glancing up. There are so many people here,  _ no one _ can see him with James, that’s a one-way ticket to triple his social issues.

“Wait, I just have-”

“Not now,” Regulus repeats, looking over at him, “Later.”

“James!” Sirius yells, “What’re you doing? Class is this way, idiot!”

“Ugh, fine Sirius,” He sighs, “Bye Reg!” 

Regulus doesn’t bid him goodbye as James turns back around, although he doesn’t get much time before he knocks into someone. 

He looks up panicked, swearing he didn’t see anyone in front of him. 

“Watch where you’re fucking going, Black,” Evan shoves his shoulder hard, “Not even a sorry?”

Regulus opens his mouth to apologize but can’t form the words to say anything.

“Cat got your tongue?” He maliciously teases, “Certainly didn’t this summer, now did it Black?”

Regulus doesn’t try to respond this time, just going to walk away. He doesn’t want to deal with this right now. 

“Oh no, you’re not getting out of this one,” Evan drags him back by the collar of his shirt, and he freezes for a second as he shakes the memory of his mother doing the same thing out of his head. He hides his shaking hands behind his back so at least Evan doesn’t get the satisfaction of knowing he got to him.

“Let me tell you one thing,” Evan whispers threateningly, “You better steer the hell away from me and all the rest of my group, because not a single one of us want to associate with spineless fucking blood traitors, got it? One step in the wrong direction and you’ll get what’s coming to you. I’m surprised anyone stayed with you in the first place.”

Evan doesn’t wait for an answer, slamming Regulus’ shoulder before walking off. Regulus’ anxiety is through the roof, and he feels like he’s teetering on the edge of full-blown panic, the lump in the back of his throat threatening to blur his vision with tears. But he doesn’t have time for any of that, and he’s already going to be later to Divination that he wants to be. 

He rushes at the most normal speedwalking pace he can up the tower, almost tripping over his robes going up the stairs a couple of times. By the time he reaches the room Professor White is already handing out things to start her lesson. Regulus quickly takes his seat next to Cynthia.

“Hey Reggie,” She happily greets, but her face falls when she sees him. “Are you ok?”

He nods, although not super assuringly.

“What happened?” She asks, leaning over the table, “You look like-”

“Greetings greetings class,” White calls from the front, “How is everyone on such a fine morning?”

Cynthia glances between the professor and him before tapping the table and whispering, “I’ll ask you later.”

He nods and puts his attention back to the front, ignoring the hum of anxiety perpetually in his ear.

He’s barely halfway through the day, this isn’t going to be fun.

***

Regulus takes the long way back to the Common Room from his music class, which, for the first time in a while, he resented going to. Normally it’s his one pleasant class of the day, but today he just wants to hide in his bed and sort through whatever happened today. Although, he knows that probably doesn’t involve anything fun for him.

He manages to avoid seeing anyone he knows, slipping into the Common Room and going to head up the stairs but stopping when he hears his name.

“Reggie!” Cynthia calls, and he turns around to see her with Turtle on her shoulder at the base of the girl’s dormitory staircase, beckoning him to follow her. He listens, following her up into her dorm. 

She shuts the door after he walks in, setting Turtle down on the ground. She sits on her bed and pats the space next to her, which he hesitantly takes after carefully dropping his bag at the door. 

“What’s going on?” She asks, her tone soft. 

“Nothing,” He shakes his head, turning to pet Turtle who has sat behind him. 

“It’s not nothing, or you wouldn’t have come into Divination looking like you were going to cry,” She calmly argues, “Tell me what’s up.”

He shakes his head again, words failing him this time. 

“Reggie,” She reaches out to put a hand on his arm, but he instinctively pulls his arm back. He knows she didn’t mean to scare him, but she kicks back up panicked feelings from this morning.

She gets up and turns the radio on before sitting back down on her bed, “Kick your shoes off.”

He does it, pulling himself to sit up on her bed completely, Turtle laying closer to him.

“I’ll listen when you’re ready,” She tells him, and he nods as he focuses on petting Turtle. He shuts everything else for a moment, focusing on calming down first, once again biting back the lump in the back of his throat. 

Cynthia doesn’t say anything for the couple of minutes he sits silently, just smiling at him when he glances up a couple of times. Finally, he takes a breath and looks up at her.

“I’ve had a rough day,” He confesses, “Rough week, really.”

“What happened today?”

“I knocked into Evan before Divination, he- he said some not great things,” Regulus says.

“What did he say to you?” She asks, a bite creeping into her voice.

“Just- nothing,” Regulus shakes his head, afraid if it comes out of his mouth he’ll cry, and that’s the  _ last _ thing he wants to do.

“Not nothing,” She moves closer, “I feel like you want to tell me.”

He doesn’t answer her, because she’s right.

“That’s a yes,” She stifles a soft laugh, “I’m listening, and I promise I won’t kill Rosier.”

“I- I went to walk off,” Regulus starts to slowly explain, “He grabbed me by, by,” Regulus pulls at his collar, the word somehow leaving him. She nods, and he keeps going. “Threatened me to leave him alone, called me a ‘spineless fucking blood traitor’.”

He hopes she  _ can’t _ see the tears welling up in the corners of his eyes, but she definitely does. 

“Reggie,” She sighs, moving closer in and urging Turtle out of the way. She pulls him into a warm hug, which he gladly accepts. Despite what he tries to avoid, he ends up crying into her shoulder. She just rocks him slightly back and forth and lightly rubs his back, not saying anything. He’s starting to realize  _ how _ much he missed her this summer.

After a couple of minutes, she doesn’t move back but quietly asks, “How’re you feeling?”

“If I knew, I would tell you,” He whispers back.

“Are you hurt? Nervous? Angry?” She questions, sitting back to look at him, “I’m assuming something like that?”

He shrugs, shaking his head a little, “I don’t know.”

“That’s cool, that’s fine,” She nods, hesitating before asking, “Anything else you want to talk about?”

“Want to?”

“Ok, anything else you  _ should be _ talking about,” She corrects herself, “I don’t want you emotionally suffocating, Reggie.”

Regulus sighs, “I don’t know, I just feel horrible.”

She gives him a saddened look, “Is there anything I can do to help?”

“I have no idea,” His gaze falls into his lap. 

“Do you want to just rant about it?” She asks, “I’ll listen.”

“Yeah,” He nods, “Lord, where do I start?” 

“Well first, you don’t have to have your full robe on, stay a while,” She softly laughs, and he takes off his robe and sets it behind him, loosening his tie so he can breathe a little easier. 

She leans back on her hands, “Alright, lay it on me, Reggie.”

Regulus takes a moment to debate where he should start, “I don’t know, I just miss being home. Not  _ home _ home, but the Potter’s house where all this didn’t happen. It’s  _ every _ day, I hear things like that, and every time I hope they’ll leave it alone someone new starts up again. I’ve been, you know, talked at-”

“Bullied,” She corrects him, “It’s bullying Reggie, even if you don’t want to admit it.”

“Whatever you say,” He sighs, “But whatever it is before. This year though, it just makes me feel- I don’t know, but it isn’t good.”

“Like upset or anxious not good?” She asks, “Sorry, just trying to make sure I know what you’re saying.”

“No, you’re fine,” He assures her, “And probably both, definitely anxious though. That’s an easy feeling to put a name to.”

“I think we’ve talked about this before,” Cynthia hesitates, “But why is that easy? You’ve definitely said that before.”

“First off all, anxiety  _ runs my life _ , you know this, but it’s pretty easy to identify what makes you feel like you’re going to vomit,” He points out, “And when I look down at my hands and they’re shaking, that’s another sign.”

Her face saddens more, and she moves forward so they’re sitting with their legs touching, and she leans forward so she’s sitting awfully close to him. Not too close, but close enough that he makes a note of it. She studies him for a moment before speaking. 

“You know I’m going to have V beat the shit out of Evan, right?” 

He fails at suppressing a laugh, “Don’t do that.”

“I won’t  _ tell _ him to, but maybe I’ll mention what happened a little-”

“No you won’t,” Regulus shakes his head, “You’re going to never tell anyone I told you that, right?”

Cynthia groans, “Ugh! Fine. If I watch him lay a hand on you again though, I have full rights.”

“I’ll ask that you don’t but I don’t think you’re going to listen to me.”

“I’m not!” She smiles, “But anyway, was there anything else you wanted to talk about?”

The energy in the room falls again and he shrugs.

“You mentioned missing home,” She says, “Talk about that.”

“I just-” He goes to explain, but he stops himself, “It’s stupid.”

“I assure you it’s not,” She says, “Gush about the Potters, I want to listen.”

“How did you know that was what I was going to do?”

“I know you well,” She softly laughs, “Now go on, tell me.”

“First of all, for the record, I would rather be pretty much anywhere but school at the moment,” He clarifies, “But- I don’t know, their house just felt so safe. Like I knew if I needed something, someone probably had already noticed. Mrs. Potter- she’s a saint. I think I miss her the most, which I hate saying because that’s weird.”

“No, that’s a  _ good _ thing,” A smile returns to Cynthia’s face.

“Why would that be a good thing?” He asks.

“Well, do you  _ normally _ miss people at home?” She questions, “And Narcissa doesn’t count.”

“I mean, who am I missing?” He argues, “My  _ mother _ ?”

“That’s the point, Reggie, it’s good that you care about her enough to miss her,” She says, “Anyway, I digress, keep telling me about them.”

Regulus tries to figure out what to say next, “It’s like little things too, like how I miss my room, or how the stars looked from the roof or the piles of books I had in the piano room. I feel- homesick, I think it’s almost like homesickness.”

“Sounds like homesickness,” She nods, “I mean, it’s bad you’re feeling like that, but it’s good you get the opportunity to. That means you probably feel like you have a home you like enough to miss.”

“It’s so weird because this summer I felt like I didn’t belong, but now that I’m here,” He sighs, “Stop getting me to tell you all my problems.”

“I’m not doing anything!” She holds her hands up in surrender, laughing, “You’re telling me on your own accord, Reggie, don’t blame me.”

“You  _ always _ trick me into this,” He crosses his arms, fighting a smile.

“I’m  _ asking you _ if there’s anything you want to get off your chest and suddenly  _ I’m  _ the bad guy?” She shakes her head, “Falsely accused.”

Regulus just laughs, rolling his eyes at her. He feels better, but he always feels better around Cynthia, she has that charm to her. 

She wraps her arms around his neck and hangs on him, which seems to be the new thing she does all the time. 

“You know you love me,” She playfully gushes.

“Do I?” He jokes, causing her to react in exaggerated offense.

“You’re so mean,” She sits back, “Do you feel better now?”

He nods.

“Good, that’s what I’m here for,” She smiles before toying with the ends of her hair, “God, the ends of my hair are destroyed from this summer.”

“What does that even mean?” He questions, shaking his head in confusion.

“My mum makes me straighten my hair  _ constantly  _ for those stupid events,” She groans, “It’s killing it! I don’t understand why she can’t just let it be curly, right?”

“Whatever you say,” He shrugs, “I like it better curled, but it looks nice both ways.”

“Just showering me with compliments,” She breaks eye contact for a moment and runs a hand through her hair, “Well anyway, what should we do now?”

“We have dinner in,” He checks his watch, “An hour.”

“Good! That’s an hour for us to do something,” She gets up and starts to dig around, “Any suggestions?”

“I never have any,” He reminds her, “Whatever you want.”

“I still have playing cards,” She jumps back onto the bed, handing them to him. 

He sighs, “Fine, I’ll deal.”


	41. He Doesn’t

“Good morning Reggie,” Cynthia smiles, getting up from the couch and walking over to him as he comes down the stairs.

“Good morning,” He replies, “What are you doing? Why aren’t you at breakfast?”

“I’m waiting for you,” She answers as the two start to walk to the Great Hall, “Duh.”

“How nice of you,” He playfully gushes, causing her to lightly bump his arm.

They walk in general silence, save for the couple of people that Cynthia greets as they walk. Not too many people are there, although Regulus immediately spots James, Remus, Sirius, and Peter. They, however, don’t see him, and luckily James is facing the opposite way of the Slytherin table. 

Cynthia and he take seats on opposite sides of the table, a decent way away from the people on either side. They grab plates and start to fill them up, Regulus’ portions much smaller than Cynthia’s. 

“That’s not a lot of food, Reggie,” She points. 

“I’m not that hungry,” He shrugs, “It’s fine.”

She goes to argue but is cut off by a letter flying into Regulus’ lap. He picks it up and looks at the handwriting, furrowing his brow when he doesn’t recognize it. 

“Who is it?” Cynthia asks, leaning over the table. 

“I don’t know,” He turns it around and sees the Potter seal on the back, immediately stuffing it in his bag, “I’ll open it later.”

She looks at him skeptically but nods, “I’ll ask you later then.”

He nods and goes back to his breakfast, now antsy to open that letter. He knows it’s Mrs. Potter, but he can’t just risk opening it around this many people. 

“So how’d you sleep?” She asks, picking up something with her fork.

Regulus just shrugs, because he didn’t really. 

“Is that not well or not at all?” She presses, to which he shrugs again. “Reggie.”

“I didn’t really sleep,” He tells her, knowing she won’t leave it alone until he tells her.

“When did you fall asleep?” She questions, “You left pretty late.”

“Maybe 1? 1:30?” He shakes his head, “I don’t know, I just know I woke up at around 4.”

“That’s  _ not _ enough sleep,” She softly reprimands, “Like, at all.”

“You think I don’t  _ know _ that?” He argues, “There’s not much I can do.”

“There has to be something, you can’t walk around like a zombie until you drop dead.”

“I won’t ‘drop dead’,” He counters, “I’ve never passed out from exhaustion before- well, if you don’t count that one time.”

“That should never even  _ be _ a possibility,” She sighs, “What do you normally do?”

“Like what I did this summer?” He asks, and she nods. “Play piano until breakfast.”

“ _ What? _ ” She questions in slight shock, “At four in the morning?”

“Mhm.”

“Sometimes I’m surprised you haven’t died yet,” She shakes her head, “I’ll yell at you about getting some sleep later, do you have Quidditch practice tomorrow?”

“Yeah, at 9:30,” He nods, mindlessly poking at an egg on his plate, “Why?”

“I might come watch you, even if Quidditch sometimes bores me I don’t have anything else to do,” She tells him, “Just thinking to the future.”

He shrugs, although he’s excited that she might come watch them practice. She’s not a big fan of Quidditch, so going out of her way to attend one of his practices is a welcomed gesture.

“Oh, do you know when the Arithmancy test is?” She asks.

“A week from today.”

“Shoot,” She curses to herself, “I’m going to need your help figuring out what we’re doing, I’m so lost.”

“I can help, don’t worry,” He assures her.

“Good, thank you,” She says, looking up over his shoulder as someone walks by. Regulus doesn’t need to turn around to figure out generally who it is, considering they elbow him in the back as they walk by. A glance over shows him it was Avery, smiling knowingly back at him. Good, he somehow did something  _ else _ they don’t like.

“Did he just elbow you?” Cynthia asks, her tone laced with both concern and anger.

“It’s fine,” Regulus quietly brushes her off, going back to pushing around his breakfast.

“That is absolutely not fine,” She firmly argues, “He has no reason to have a problem with you, you’ve done nothing!”

“It’s fine,” He repeats, a little firmer this time.

“Nope,” She goes to get up.

“Thia,” He stops her, “Leave it.”

She sighs in defeat but drops the subject, this time looking up with a little more pleasure to someone over his shoulder. Again, he doesn’t have to turn around, but this time it’s because Vaughn takes a seat next to him.

“Did you guys hear what happened in Muggle Studies yesterday?” He excitedly asks, to which both of them shake their heads.

“Neither of us takes Muggle Studies,” Cynthia points out.

“I know I know, I was just  _ asking _ if someone told you,  _ Claire _ ,” He replies, “But anyway, you know Grace Rail, right?”

The two of them nod again.

“Ok, so she didn’t have her robe, right…”

***

Regulus has been waiting to open the letter  _ all _ day, avoiding the questioning from Cynthia every time he would go in his bag. He’s surprised she didn’t figure it out by now.

They’re released from Transfiguration, his last class of the day, and he’s one of the first ones out of the room, Cynthia struggling to catch up to him.

“You’re in a rush,” She laughs, speeding up to match his pace, “You won’t even tell me who it is, now I’m invested so you  _ have _ to.”

“I’ll tell you when we get back,” He says.

“I’m assuming to my dorm,” She fills in the blanks, to which he nods. “Sounds like a good agreement to me.”

They walk back pretty fast and in complete silence, although it’s more so because Regulus just wants to read what she wrote already. He shouldn’t be  _ this _ excited over a letter, but look where he is.

Cynthia leads him up the stairs and into her dorm, the two taking off their shoes and Regulus pulling the letter out of his bag.

He takes a seat on her bed so his back is to the wall and starts to open it.

“Are you going to tell me who sent it?” She asks, sitting down across from him, the gap between them filled by Turtle.

He just hands her the envelope with the seal stuck to it, and she studies it a moment before mouthing ‘Ohh’ in realization.

“We were just talking about that yesterday, that’s so funny,” She comments, leaning forward to try and see it. 

He pulls it away, “Not until I read it first.”

“Ok ok,” She backs up, letting him open it.

_ Regulus, _

_ I thought I’d wait a little while to send something, let you get settled in and such. I hope things are going well at school, as I know I miss having you all around the house. The house is just too quiet, and I miss the piano music just as much as I thought I would. Although, without James, the house is much cleaner. _

_ I spoke to Ted the other day at a Ministry event, and he was telling me how often Dora has asked for you. I’m sure Andromeda will send something soon, because from what Ted had told me Dora has not left her alone. I’m sure, if you decide to come back for break, she’ll be thrilled to see you (as will we, of course). _

_ I didn’t have much new to fill you in on other than that, but I do want to hear how things have been with you. Make the letter as long as you’d like, I want to hear everything. _

_ ~ Mrs. Potter (Mr. Potter said hello too) _

He beams down at the letter, ignoring the fact that he has to actually respond to it. He’ll think about what he’s going to say later, for right now he’s appreciating the sentiment. 

“What does it say?” She asks, and he hands it to her. It’s not anything personal. 

She reads through it, smiling. “Aww, that’s so nice of her.”

He nods, taking it back, “As I said, she’s a saint.”

“Also, who is Dora and why is she asking for you?” She questions, “I feel like this is a summer detail you’ve left out.”

“She’s Andromeda’s daughter, I haven’t mentioned her?”

“Nope,” Cynthia shakes her head, “You mentioned seeing Andromeda again, but you kind of brushed over it.”

“Yeah, Dora loves me, I don’t know why,” He glances towards the door, “Hold on, let me grab something.”

She nods and he heads over to his dorm, going into his trunk and digging out the photo album before heading back into her room. 

“What’s that?” She asks as he sits back where he was, “Is that a photo album?”

“Mhm,” He flips to the page with the photo of him and Nymphadora, “That’s her.”

She takes it and just stares at it, and he swears he sees the tips of her ears go pink before she smiles up at him, “That’s so cute Reggie, I’m so mad you didn’t mention that.”

“I guess I forgot,” He shrugs, waiting for her to hand it back. She doesn’t, instead flipping between some of the pages.

“You should put some pictures of us in here,” She comments, “I think I qualify to make your photo album, right?”

“I don’t have any of them,” He says, “They’re at Grimmauld.”

“Wait,” She gets up and grabs a box on her dresser, carrying it back over to sit in front of him, “I’ll give you some.”

“But then  _ you _ won’t have them,” He points out. 

“But you have  _ none _ ,” She reminds him, “I can spare you a couple.”

“I’ll see if I can ask Narcissa to steal back the box in my room,” He thinks out loud, “It shouldn’t be too hard, she stole back my broom this summer.”

“ _ How _ did she do that?” Cynthia questions, “That’s a  _ very _ large object.”

“I didn’t ask questions,” He shakes his head, “I just accepted it.”

“Fair,” She opens the box, “Well, do you want to look through these anyway?”

“If you want to,” He shrugs, and she starts to pick out photos of the two of them.

Looking at all of them, he figures he has two letters to write this afternoon.

***

Cynthia heads up the final staircase, meeting Lily at the top of the stairs outside the Gryffindor Common Room.

“Hey Cynthia,” She smiles, “Are you ready for our two hours of stairs?”

“Ugh!” Cynthia groans, “I don’t think I have a choice.”

“You don’t,” Lily happily affirms, and the two start their route. “So, anything new with you?”

“I mean,” Cynthia hesitates, “No, not really.”

“We have 2 hours, girl, might as well tell me,” Lily reasons.

“You really want to hear it?”

“This means that either you did something horrible,” Lily says, “Or this is about him.”

“This is about him,” She nods, knowing Lily means Regulus.

“Alright, what happened this time?”

“So, ok, this is weird because you know who it is now,” Cynthia comments.

“I don’t  _ really _ ,” Lily argues, “I’m friends with his brother, I’ve only met him once and he didn’t talk to me.”

“Once again, you’re lucky he looked at you,” She laughs, “But even the fact that you know  _ who _ he is is unsettling.”

“I’m not going to do anything about it,” She assures her, “Your secret is safe with me, now tell me what happened.”

“He got a letter and it mentioned a girl named Dora, so obviously I was confused because  _ I _ thought he had already told me about his whole summer,” Cynthia explains, “So I asked and apparently it’s his cousin’s daughter, and he had a picture of him and her in a photo album.”

“You’re blushing  _ so _ hard right now,” Lily lightly bumps her with her shoulder.

“And that’s exactly what I did today,” Cynthia rubs her face, “I had makeup on, so I’m hoping it wasn’t glaring obvious, but that’s just my wishful thinking.”

“Not passing any judgment on him, but I do not think he noticed,” She says, “From what you’ve told me, he’s just a tad oblivious as far as feelings go.”

“That’s my saving grace,” She nods, “But it’s also a problem, because I have  _ no _ idea how he sees me, but I don’t think it’s the same way.”

Lily looks over confused, “How do you know that?”

“I mean, there’s no reason for me to believe he does,” Cynthia argues, “He treats me how he always has, well, if you don’t count the first couple of years we were friends.”

“He doesn’t seem like the most expressive person, Cynthia,” Lily points out, “From what I’ve seen, heard from you, and heard from the guys, he’s very reserved.”

“But he’s  _ not _ really that reserved with me, at least I don’t think,” Cynthia counters, “I feel like I would be able to tell, maybe just a little.”

“I love you Cynthia, but you for sure couldn’t tell,” Lily laughs as Cynthia rolls her eyes. “I’m sorry, but it’s true. Ok, consider this for a moment, say he does like you back, what signs are you seeing?”

“He doesn’t,” Cynthia responds.

“That’s not what I’m asking,” Lily says back, “ _ If _ he did, what kinds of things would tell you that?”

“Well, body language, know him it would be more nervous, maybe a little flustered. He might- I don’t know, he’s such a challenge to predict,” Cynthia shakes her head, “That sounded horribly mean, I didn’t mean for it to sound like that.”

“No, I know what you mean,” Lily assures her, “Although, it’s funny to watch you suddenly care how you describe people when you’re describing him-”

“Lily!” Cynthia exclaims, “Stop it!”

“I could, but teasing you is just so fun,” Lily laughs, “But really, I wouldn’t take the possibility off the table. I’m still a proponent of you asking-”

“If I ask, it will  _ not _ go well, I refuse to do that to him,” Cynthia shuts her down.

“Ok, Miss I care about people,” Lily teases, “But I have high hopes, you just have to give it some time. He has a lot going on.”

“I know,” Cynthia sighs, “He has a  _ lot _ going on, I’m just letting things be for now.”

“Smart,” Lily nods, “Anyway, what else is there to talk about?”

“How you’re maybe the smallest bit in love with the Potter boy?”

“If you don’t shut up,” Lily jokingly threatens, Cynthia laughing. “I’m  _ not _ , I just don’t hate him like I used to.”

“So you’re in love with him.”

“We’re talking about something else,” Lily demands, “Did you hear that a duel messed up one of these paintings yesterday?”

“No,” Cynthia looks around, “How the hell haven’t I heard that?”

Lily shrugs, “I don’t know, wanna see if we can find it?”

“Count me in.”


	42. You Mean More Than That

“Does that make sense?” Regulus asks, just having finished explaining the Arithmancy topic for the third time. He looks up at an extremely distressed Cynthia across the table, who is so clearly not understanding a word he’s saying. 

“No,” She sighs, “I don’t know what you’re saying.”

He thinks for a moment, wondering if there’s another way he can try and teach it.

“What’s confusing you?”

“I don’t know,” She sits back, “All of it, you’re speaking gibberish to me.”

Regulus stares at the chart he’s teaching her how to use because there is  _ no _ way he can get any simpler than he already is. If this is gibberish, there’s no chance he’s going to teach her anything without explaining every basic Arithmancy concept. 

“Why did I take Arithmancy? She groans, “I can’t understand it.”

“You’ll be able to,” He assures her, “We’ll figure it out.”

“It’s fine, I’ll just- I can figure it out,” She takes back the chart in front of him, “It’s already been at least a couple of hours, I don’t want to keep you forever.”

“No, you’re fine,” He says, “I’m not busy, I want to help until you understand, the test is tomorrow.”

“I’m not going to do well,” She runs a stressed hand through her hair, “Goddamnit.”

“You’re going to do fine, I just have to figure out how to explain it,” He calmly answers, taking back the chart. He taps his quill against the corner a couple of times before turning it so it’s facing her.

“If you wanted to read this chart,” He says, “What is the first thing you would do?”

She looks at it a moment before shaking her head.

“Guess.”

“I don’t know,” She hesitantly replies. 

“Be wrong, it’s fine,” He encourages, “I just need an answer so we can start somewhere.”

She just stares at it, but she just ends up shaking her head again.

Regulus suppresses a sigh, because, as much as he loves her, she is  _ not  _ an easy tutoring student. She’s too much of a perfectionist, she won’t just get it wrong. It’s crippling  _ and _ extremely challenging to tutor.

“You’ve used this before,” He reminds her, “It was just one less part, you’ve read something like this.”

“I don’t know how,” She says again, a strong sense of defeat in her voice.

“Take a deep breath,” He instructs, taking a deep breath with her, “Let’s start all the way over.”

She nods, “Ok, yeah.”

He walks her through it in the most detail possible pausing every time he says something to watch her nod in understanding. He refused to move on if she didn’t say she understood. When they get to the end, he sees her smile.

“Did  _ that _ make sense?” He asks again.

“Yeah, yeah it did,” She picks up her quill and takes back the page of problems they’re working on. 

He helps her with the first one, although she doesn’t really need it. She reaches the answer pretty quickly. 

“See? You got it,” He points to another one, “Do that one.”

She works through it, looking up a couple of times to make sure she’s doing everything right. She circles her answer and passes it across the table, and Regulus reads it over.

He nods, “Mhm, that’s right.”

“Holy- You’re a miracle worker Reggie,” She holds up her hand and he gives her a high five. “Thank you so much.”

“Of course,” He says, “I told you you would get it.”

“I’m going to finish up a couple more of these, but you look exhausted,” She says, “You should go to bed.”

“I’ll stay down here,” He shakes his head, “I won’t fall asleep anyway.”

“Well, then I’m retiring up to my room to finish these and go to bed,” She starts to collect her things together, “Now you don’t have a choice.”

“I’m still not going to fall asleep for another couple of hours,” He argues, getting up and grabbing the couple of things he brought. 

“You’re impossible,” She sighs, laughing.

He pushes in the chair he was sitting in, “It’s not by choice, but alright.”

“No, don’t make me feel bad,” She whines, “Let me live in ignorance.”

“Alright, I’m going up to bed and going right to sleep,” He jokes, “Better?”

“Better,” She starts towards the stairs, “If you say it it’ll happen.”

“I’ll let you know how that works,” He laughs.

“Can’t wait,” She looks back from the bottom of the girl’s staircase, “Night, Reggie!”

“Goodnight, Thia.”

***

Regulus watches Cynthia’s hands nervously drum on the table, anxiously waiting for Professor Ray to hand out the tests they took on Friday. She had been stressed about it all weekend because God knows Cynthia doesn’t fail  _ anything _ . 

“Alright students,” The professor picks up a stack of papers on her desk, “The tests from last class were an interesting mix, however, there was only one perfect score. I’ll leave the rest of the time in class to make corrections, remember it is  _ not _ required but highly encouraged, especially if you plan to O.W.L. in Arithmancy come the end of the year.”

A Ravenclaw in the front row raises her hand.

“Yes, Ms. Joanes?”

“Do we get points back for corrections?”

“Not this time,” Professor Ray shakes her head, “There was ample preparation time.”

The kid nods and she begins to pass out tests, stacked in alphabetical order. Regulus is second to get his, considering his last name is Black. He flips it over and smiles. A 100, good.

“What’d you get?” Cynthia leans over, “Goddamn, of course it was you.”

She watches the Professor walk around the room, handing out a few more tests before placing down Cynthia’s. Regulus doesn’t need to lean over to know she didn’t do well, he sees it immediately when her face falls.

“What did you get?” He asks, but she shakes her head. “We’ll talk about it later.”

He waits for her to nod before going back to putting away his test and starting on the homework. He steals a couple of glances in her direction, watching her lean on the desk away from him, fiddling with her quill as she stares at her test. He’s sure she didn’t do as well as she wanted, but he just doesn’t know how bad that was. A 75 is bad in Cynthia’s eyes. 

Two more classes and his music class, and then hopefully he can help.

***

“Regulus, can I talk to you a moment?” Professor Flitwick calls as he goes to leave the room. Regulus reluctantly walks back over to the Professor, who is collecting the music they worked on today.

“I know I ask you this often, but I’m hoping one day you say yes,” Professor Flitwick laughs, “I sincerely believe you would be wonderful back up for Frog Choir. Would you mind at least attending our rehearsal Wednesday?”

He shakes his head, “Apologies, I have Quidditch.”

“Oh yes yes, you play Quidditch,” He nods, “Quite alright Regulus, I just thought I’d ask. Have a nice day, I’ll see you tomorrow.”

“You as well,” Regulus nods before walking out of the room, going to walk back to the Common Room but getting immediately slammed into. 

“Shit!” They yell, “Oh shit shit, I’m sorry Reg!”

Regulus looks up to see James scrambling to his feet, offering Regulus a hand. Regulus takes it, feeling a little lightheaded from the jarring movements he just went through. He leans against the wall just so he can get his barrings.

“Oh shit, are you ok?” James frantically asks, “Please tell me you’re ok.”

“I’m fine,” Regulus assures him, pushing off from the wall once he feels a little more stable.

“You’re sure?”

“Positive,” He nods.

“I’m so sorry, I didn’t see you,” James apologizes again, “I was getting away from Filch and I thought this hallway was empty because it normally is but I came around the corner and-”

“James,” Regulus stops him, “It’s fine.”

James lets out a breath, pausing a moment before asking, “Where are you heading?”

“Back to the Common Room,” He says.

“Oh, that’s so-”

“James!” Someone angrily yells.

“Shit-” James glances back, “Gotta go bye!” 

James goes running off again, Filch and his funny run chasing after him. Regulus just laughs and rolls his eyes before heading back to the Common Room. 

He walks in and doesn’t see Cynthia, which is strange since she normally meets him here after Music. He decides to head right up to her room, knocking on the door.

“Not right now,” She answers, her voice clearly sounding upset. 

“It’s Reg, Thia,” He softly replies, hearing the door lock click open. He opens the door slowly, peeking in to see her wrapped in a blanket, her face streaked with tears. 

“Hey,” She wipes her face, sniffling.

He drops his bag at the door and takes off his robe, walking over to sit in front of her. He doesn’t ask anything, just pulling her into a hug. She buries her head into his shoulder, starting to softly cry again. He doesn’t ask any questions yet, knowing Cynthia prefers to simply feel rather than rationalize.

They sit there for a while, to the point where Regulus is surprised that he was alright with it. If it were anyone else he would have felt like he was suffocating, but not with Cynthia. Oddly, she doesn’t do that to him.

Finally, she sits back. “I’m sorry,” She softly apologizes. 

“Don’t apologize,” He says, “What happened?” 

“You know.”

“The test?” He asks, and she nods. “I mean, I don’t know what you got, but whatever it is it  _ doesn’t _ matter. What you got doesn’t matter.”

“I  _ failed _ ,” She objects.

“Again, so what?” He argues as softly as he can.

“God, I don’t  _ fail _ , I shouldn’t have, I should've been able to do well,  _ at least _ pass,” Her breathing hitches, “You spent  _ hours _ trying to helping me when you didn’t at all have to for this one test. I didn’t- I don’t- I-”

“Hey hey,” He stops her, letting the silence sit for a minute as he thinks of what’s right to say. He’s not the best at this. “It doesn’t matter at all what you got, you understood it Thursday. The number doesn’t change all that work.”

She shakes her head, looking down into her lap and not saying anything. He doesn’t know how to help, despite how much he  _ really _ wants to. He hates seeing her upset.

He puts a hand on her knee, mirroring what he knows comforts him. “Do you want to talk through what’s going on?”

“I don’t know- School is my  _ thing _ , I’m good at it,” She explains, not looking up, “I’m not particularly talented in anything else, and I can’t even do this one thing right.”

“You made a mistake, it doesn’t mean you’re not good at it,” He explains, “Do you think I’m good at piano?”

“Of course I do,” She answers, looking up, “Where is this going?”

“I mess up  _ all the time _ ,” He points out, “There are so many pieces I just can’t play, but that doesn’t make me  _ bad _ . You’re better than one test in one class, you mean more than that.”

She smiles at him, looking over as Turtle climbs up the ramp to sit on the bed. 

“See, Turtle agrees with me,” He points as Turtle settles into Cynthia’s lap. 

She nods, wiping her face on her sleeve, “Thank you, Reggie.”

“Of course,” He answers, reaching out to scratch Turtle under her chin. 

“Sometimes I think maybe you do have a heart,” She laughs, “As much as you argue it.”

“You think wrong,” He answers, “I don’t.”

“You do,” She playfully coos, “Just a little bit.”

“Not even a little bit,” He leans down, “Right Turtle?”

“Oh, now you’re talking to my cat?” She dramatically sighs, “I’ve been stood up.”

“I was just talking to you,” He sits back, “You want me to talk  _ more _ ?”

“I know, I’m asking a lot,” She looks down at Turtle a moment, “I wish- Nevermind.”

“You wish what?” He asks.

“No, nothing, nevermind,” She shakes her head, “A thought that should stay in my head.”

“No, now you have to tell me,” He presses, confused as to what she wanted to say. Cynthia isn’t one to hold back from saying something, she’s his outspoken other half.

“No no, it was just a nothing thought,” She continues to brush him off, “As you were.”

He stares at her a moment, “I don’t believe you.”

“Well start,” She laughs, although it’s nervous, “And stop staring at me like that.”

“I want to know what you were going to say.” He’s hoping continuing to press will get it out of her because he’s  _ really _ interested in what would make  _ Cynthia _ take back a sentence.

“Reggie, I’m not telling you,” She denies, “We’re moving on.”

“Alright, alright,” He concedes.

She pauses a moment, “Can you believe it’s only Tuesday?”

“I keep forgetting I have Quidditch tomorrow,” He sighs, “I don’t know how I’m going to manage that, Emma is tough.”

“You were fine Saturday,” She puzzles, “What’re you worried about?”

“I was really off on Saturday, first,” He clarifies, “Second, I’m just tired.”

“You need  _ rest _ ,” She says, “Not even sleep, just rest.”

“When did this become about me?” He laughs, “All of a sudden it’s about  _ my _ health?”

“Yes! It’s always about your health because you  _ don’t take care of it _ ,” She argues, “Do you have anything you need to do?”

“I’m behind on Defense Against the Dark Arts,” He sighs, “I need to catch back up.”

“Why are you behind?” She questions, “Didn’t we work together last week?”

“Yeah, I didn’t read the chapter before that,” He tells her, “It was  _ so _ boring.”

“It’s  _ not _ boring, here,” She gets up and goes in her bag, pulling out the textbook, “I’m going to read it to you.”

“You’re going to what?” He asks, “What’re you doing?”

She lays down and flips to one of her bookmarks, patting the spot next to her, “Come, lay down.”

“I’ll sit up,” He shakes his head, “But I’m listening.”

“Alright!” She clear her throat, “Chapter 4…”

***

Cynthia looks over after she finishes the paragraph, seeing Regulus asleep next to her. He laid down around 10 minutes in, and she could tell the whole time she was reading that he was going to fall asleep. His eyelids looked like they were too heavy for him every time she would look over for confirmation that he was still following. 

She just stops and stares at him a moment, wondering how she ended up here so  _ goddamn _ in love with this boy who she’s known since she was 11. Someone who she’ll never be able to figure out how he feels because he’s so convinced he isn’t capable of love. Someone plagued with more problems than she could possibly imagine. Someone whose hands start to shake at the thought of admitting what’s actually wrong. Of course,  _ of course, _ she’s in love with him. 

She hasn’t stopped thinking about what he said to her, about how she means more than a test. It was probably just in an effort to comfort her, but she just clung to it. Regulus so rarely expresses any kind of emotion, so naturally, that was a little bit of a surprise. His form of comfort is something that would only be comforting coming from his mouth. 

She watches him stir a little, his face twisting with a hint of distress. She quickly goes back to reading, hoping that maybe the silence is what’s causing whatever is happening. She’s right because after a minute of reading his demeanor softens again. 

So she just keeps reading, far past the end of the chapter. 


	43. Deal

“So where are you bringing me?” Regulus asks Cynthia, who told him when he got back from classes today that they’re ‘being social on a Friday night, see you at 8’.

“You’ll see,” She simply answers, “I think you won’t mind it.”

“That’s not how this works.”

“Just trust me, Reggie,” She says, “You’ll be fine, we’ll have fun.”

“I will  _ not _ be having fun,” He crosses his arms, “I’m currently not having fun, where are we going?”

“You’ll see!” She repeats, and he just sighs as he follows her up several turning staircases. She leads him up to the portrait of the Gryffindor Common Room, where Lily is standing outside.

“Hey, Cynthia, I see you’ve brought a guest,” Lily smiles at Regulus, “The more the merrier, come on, Marlene is already hammered.”

“Of course she is,” Cynthia laughs, following Lily into the Common Room. Regulus follows hesitantly after, not quite knowing what he’s walking into. 

The bulk of the people in the room are faces he recognizes, James, Sirius, Remus, Peter, Marlene, and Dorcas. 

“Reg!” James exclaims, “Hi!”

Regulus waves at him, following Cynthia over to take a seat on the ground, between the chair where Lily is sitting and the couch with James, Sirius, and Remus. Remus is laying on top of Sirius, facing downward, Sirius practically wrapped around him and running a hand through his hair.

“Shh James,” Sirius scolds.

“Shit- Sorry,” He apologizes, “I got excited.”

“Do you two want any?” Marlene, who is sitting in Dorcas’ lap, points at the bottle on the table.

“ _ What _ did I say about offering my brother alcohol?” Sirius stops her.

“Hush it, Sirius,” Marlene gets up, pouring two smaller cups and handing them to both of them, “You don’t have to drink it, just thought I’d give you the option, and spite Sirius the  _ buzzkill _ .”

Sirius looks down at Regulus, and Regulus makes direct eye contact as he takes a sip of the drink he was just handed. He doesn’t even flinch at the taste, and Sirius shakes his head before looking back up.

“I’m pretending I didn’t see that,” He says.

Marlene points to Regulus, “I like him, we need to have him more often.”

“Marlene approves of your plus 1 choice, Cynthia,” Lily laughs, “Although, Regulus, you’re not much of a plus one considering we’ve already met you.”

Regulus takes another sip, this is a lot of people talking both to him and about him.

“Anyway,” Marlene says, “Truth or Dare time?”

“I’m in,” Lily says.

“Me too,” James quickly chimes in.

Peter nods.

“Sounds good to me,” Sirius looks down and mutters something to Remus, who answers just as quietly, “Remus says he might play in a little while, but not right now.”

“Cynthia, Regulus,” Lily looks over, “Either of you want to play?”

“I’ll play, sure,” Cynthia looks over to Regulus, “Do you want to?”

Regulus shakes his head, that sounds like a nightmare.

“Cool, that makes 7 of us, that’s a good number,” Lily looks around, “Does anyone want to start?” 

“I will,” Marlene looks at Dorcas, “Dee, truth or dare?” 

Dorcas sighs, “Dare.”

Marlene laughs before she can even say anything, “I dare you to make out with me.”

Dorcas rolls her eyes but listens, the whole room groaning. 

“We knew that was coming,” Sirius says, “Right when Marlene offered, that was the logical next step.”

The two break away from one another, Marlene looking completely unphased.

“Alright, so who’s next?” 

***

The game goes on for the better of an hour, everyone getting progressively drunker, causing the game to get progressively stranger. Regulus denies every offer to join because he’d rather not involve himself in that chaos. Although, he is on his 3rd drink, so at least he’s enjoying watching everyone play.

“Cynthia, truth or dare?” Lily asks, leaning back so she can easily look over at Cynthia. 

“I’m going to regret this,” Cynthia sighs, “Truth.”

Lily smiles, clearly knowing exactly what she’s going to say. “Do you have an  _ interest _ in anyone?”

“Lily!” She groans, “Come  _ on _ .”

“Ok, so that means yes you do,” Marlene chimes in, “Who is it?” 

“I’m not telling you that,” Cynthia denies, “Yes, I do, that’s the answer to my truth question.  _ No _ additional questions.”

Marlene studies at her a moment before gasping, “Oh my-”

“Marlene!” Cynthia stops her, “We’re  _ moving on _ .”

Marlene whispers something to Dorcas, who laughs before nodding. 

“Thanks, Lily,” Cynthia sarcastically thanks, “Now Marlene is going to be on me all night.”

Lily just shrugs before looking at Sirius, “You’re next.”

“Hmm,” He looks around, “James, truth or dare?”

“Uhh, dare,” James answers. 

“Go upstairs and grab the chocolate bar sitting on Remus’ nightstand, but do it without your glasses,” He holds his hand out.

“So you’re just going to make me do your bidding  _ and  _ make me do it blind?” James asks, Sirius nodding. He huffs before putting his glasses in Sirius’ hand. 

He slams into the wall by the staircase almost immediately.

“Use your hand, dipshit,” Sirius calls after him as he goes upstairs.

“You’ve doomed him,” Remus says, “He’ll never find it.”

“But we get to hear him slam into walls,” Sirius argues, “That’s worth it.”

“Just a little,” Remus softly laughs, resting his head back on Sirius.

“Well, while James is gone,” Marlene looks at Cynthia, “Cynthia, truth or dare?”

“I hate you so much,” Cynthia sighs, “Dare.”

“I dare you to let Regulus braid your hair,” She says, “I have a hair tie, here.”

She tosses the hair tie at Regulus across the room, which he catches. 

“Jokes on you, he’s done it before,” Cynthia says, keeping her head straight as Regulus starts to French braid her hair, something he’s done several times before. 

“Yeah, Reg knows how to braid hair,” Sirius says, “Andy taught him the second he gained fine motor skills.”

“And you don’t?” Marlene asks, “It’s seeming to me that you’re the inferior brother.”

“Watch it Mckinnon,” He jokingly warns, “I wasn’t the baby in the family.”

“She tried to teach you,” Regulus says, not looking away from what he’s doing, “You didn’t listen.”

Marlene breaks out laughing, “You just got fucking outed Sirius.”

“Whatever whatever, same thing,” He brushes it off. Marlene is staring amused at Cynthia, Regulus a little confused as to what she’s finding so interesting.

“Marlene,” Cynthia warns.

“Cynthia,” Marlene replies. 

Regulus ties the bottom of the braid, which is most of the way down her back and moves to sit back where he was before. Cynthia pulls her hair to the side to run a hand over it, smiling at him. 

“Thank you, Reggie,” She says before looking to Marlene, “Happy?” 

“Very,” Marlene happily answers, “Regulus, are you sure you don’t want to play?”

He nods, “I’m sure.”

“Alright, if you say so,” She shrugs, “Who is-”

“I did it!” James exclaims, coming stumbling back down the stairs. He runs over and hands Sirius what he got, “Glasses please!”

“That took you  _ so _ long,” Sirius comments, handing James’ glasses back. James hurtles over the back of the couch and takes his seat again.

“Yeah, I got a little distracted,” He laughs, “But I did it! What did I miss?”

“We did one dare, Reg braided Cynthia’s hair for Marlene’s amusement,” Sirius explains, “Hell if I knew what was happening.”

“Glad I didn’t miss much,” He leans back, looking at Regulus, “Hi Reg!”

“Hi James,” Regulus answers. 

“It’s your turn James,” Sirius lightly kicks him. 

“Oh shit,” James says looking around for someone to pick. Regulus doesn’t hear what he says before Cynthia turns to talk to him. 

“How’re you doing?” She asks. 

“Fine,” He answers, “Why?”

“Just asking,” She shrugs, “I just want to make sure you’re not despising this right now.”

He holds up his cup to her before sipping it. 

“Ok, good point,” She laughs, “Although, I was right in saying this was going to be not torturous, right?” 

“I guess,” He playfully concedes, yawning. 

“Are you tired?” She asks, “We can go back if you’re tired, I don’t want to keep you here forever if you’d rather be asleep, God knows you need it.”

He shakes his head, “I’m fine.”

“Likely story,” She laughs, “But if you say so, Reggie.” 

“Cynthia,” Dorcas calls, “Truth or dare?”

“It’s been me for like every round!” She protests, “I blame this on Lily.”

“They really want to get out of you who you like, girl,” Lily says.

“They’re not _ going _ to,” She shoots an aggressive look at Marlene, who laughs. 

“ _ Truth _ or  _ dare _ ?” Dorcas repeats.

“Fine, dare,” She replies.

“Hmm, I was  _ hoping _ you would pick truth,” She puzzles, “I dare you to finish someone’s cup.”

“God, this stupid dare,” She groans, looking around the room.

Sirius takes his cup off the table, “Do not pick me, this cup is almost full.”

Regulus holds out his cup, and Cynthia smiles before taking it, “Thank you, Reggie.”

She sighs before she downs the rest of the cup, her face souring.

“How the  _ hell _ do you drink that?” She hands the empty cup back to him, “That is gross.”

“It’s not  _ that _ bad,” Regulus answers.

“More power to you, I couldn’t enjoy drinking that.”

“It’s not about taste,” He says.

“Now you sound like a drunk,” She lightly elbows him, “It’s just the  _ feeling.” _

“Oh shut up,” He rolls his eyes, “Live my life and come back to me.”

“I’ll pass on that one,” Cynthia replies, pausing to look around at the room, “ _ What _ are you all so interested in?”

“You two talking,” Marlene playfully bites back.

“So mean to us,” She rests her head on Regulus’ shoulder, catching him slightly off guard. “Right Reggie?”

“Mhm,” Regulus nods, toying with the cup in his hand. If he was sober, he probably would be a little more surprised. But, oddly, he isn’t. Although it is Cynthia, she gets a pass on most things. 

Marlene violently whispers something to Dorcas, the two of them laughing over whatever they’re talking about. 

“Cynthia it’s your turn,” Lily says.

“Mmm,” She looks around, “Oh, James, truth or dare.”

“Dare,” He immediately responds.

“Lay on top of the mantle,” She points to the mantle above the fireplace.

James gets up and listens, Cynthia grabbing Regulus’ hand and dragging him over to steal the spot where James was sitting. 

“I did-” He dramatically gasps, “That’s  _ my _ spot!” 

“Now that is,” Cynthia smiles, moving back to sit how they were before, “Who is next?”

“Since Peter is knocked out, Lily, go ahead.”

***

Everyone else left the Common Room not even 10 minutes ago, the girls going up to their dorm, James and Peter heading to bed, and Cynthia and Regulus having head back to the Slytherin Common Room. Sirius is left with Remus, both of which are simply laying with one another, listening to the soft crackle of the dying fire.

“Sirius,” Remus breaks the silence, his voice quiet.

“Hm?” Sirius looks over to Remus looking up at him, “What’s up love?”

“Did you see the way the two of them interact? Cynthia and Reg?” He asks.

“Oh, did I,” Sirius sighs, “I don’t know how I felt about that.”

“Why?” Remus questions, “He seemed comfortable.”

“That’s why I’m a little conflicted,” He says, “Reg isn’t that comfortable with  _ anyone _ .”

“Oh, you think he...” Remus doesn’t have to finish his sentence, “Just a little bit.”

“He’s still like a baby, I don’t want to think about that,” Sirius groans, “Maybe it’s because he was drinking, which I’m  _ also _ not happy about.”

“He’s 15,” Remus laughs, “You can’t fault him, he probably learned it from you.”

“He, unfortunately, definitely learned it from me,” Sirius says, “I mean, if he  _ does  _ like her, I’m happy for him, yatta yatta, but he for sure doesn’t realize it if he does.”

“How do you know?”

“Reg would immediately pull away when he feels  _ anything _ ,” Sirius points out, “I mean anything, so I think if he figured out he felt admiration towards someone, he wouldn’t say a word to them.”

“Regardless of what he feels,  _ she _ is definitely ‘interested’ in him,” Remus says, using air quotes to quote Lily earlier. 

“Oh 100%,” He nods, “I’m surprised I’ve never heard about her, especially this summer. Did I tell you she gave him a  _ running hug _ and he just laughed?”

“Yes, yes you have,” He laughs, “You’re like a protective father, not letting his little daughter date a disgusting boy.”

“Oh shut up,” Sirius rolls his eyes.

Remus teasingly laughs, “Make me.”

“Every time, huh,” Sirius smiles before pressing a deep kiss to Remus’ lips. “Will you now?”

“I’ll think about it,” Remus rests his head back on Sirius’ chest, pausing for a moment before muttering, “I still think they’re cute, though.”

“They’re  _ not _ cute, it’s  _ weird _ , they’re 15!”

“You literally cannot say anything, Mr. Hypersexual,” Remus laughs, “We were their age.”

“But we’re different,” Sirius tries to argue, “We- Just- We‘re different.”

“Exactly,” Remus answers, the two pausing when they hear footsteps down the stairs. Sirius looks up to see Lily coming back down. 

“Hey Lily,” Sirius greets, “Welcome back.”

“I heard you two talking,” She says, sitting in the seat she was in before, “I have information.”

“Oh shit.”

“So, Cynthia is  _ in love _ with Regulus, like, she had a crush on him since Third Year and it’s just gotten worse in love.”

“So James Potter in love?” Remus asks. 

“Don’t bring up Potter, we’re not talking about him,” Lily stops him, “But yes.”

“I figured,” Sirius groans, “I  _ don’t  _ want to think about the two of them.”

“For the record, she has absolutely no clue if he likes her back, we talk about it all the time,” Lily tells them, “She tells me about all these little things that he does, it’s an investment.”

“I’m not liking how this is looking,” Sirius says, “I don’t want to hear about the  _ flustering  _ things my  _ younger brother  _ does, I’m out, let me up.”

Remus sits up, “Well, I’m invested, I’ll be up soon.”

Sirius gives him a kiss before getting up, “Have fun gossiping.”

“We will!” Lily calls as Sirius retreats upstairs, “Anyway, the other day she was talking about how he showed her this picture of him and his little cousin I think? And she said she went all red and got all flustered, like that.”

“That’s adorable,” Remus smiles, “I’ve met that little girl, Dora. She didn’t like me, but she adored Reg.”

“I think Cynthia is going to  _ die  _ if she sees him interact with her, I’m hoping she somehow does,” Lily laughs, “Sometimes she says stuff that reminds me of you, like the other day she also told me she would never tell him because she wouldn’t want to do that to  _ him _ as if she suddenly cares about people.”

“I think I said those exact words to you,” Remus says, “Although, I don’t think she’s going to get the same opportunity I did.”

“Definitely not, not with him,” Lily shakes her head, “She said he’s extremely shy.”

“She’s completely right, he’s barely spoken to me and I was over kind of often this summer,” Remus says, “James said he didn’t talk to him for a week when he first met him, and James  _ lived _ with him.”

“Of course she likes him, someone who none of us will ever be able to get that information out of,” Lily sighs. 

“Maybe James.”

“Potter is  _ not _ going to be helpful,” Lily crosses her arms. 

“You want to put money on it?” Remus offers, “Give me until we get back from break, he’ll do it.”

Lily puts her hand out, “5 galleons, deal?”

Remus shakes her hand. 

“Deal.”


	44. Total Shutdown

“Take your seats, take your seats,” Professor McGonagall says, quieting the room of rowdy Fifth Years. “I want to give you ample time to work today, the longer you take to quiet the less time you get.”

“What’re we working on?” Cynthia whispers to Regulus, who shrugs.

“Today we’re going to be resuming our work on Vanishing Spells,” She states as papers start to distribute themselves to kids, “I’m giving each of you an instance of an incident regarding a miscast Vanishing Spell, I’m asking for a full presentation on the listed parameters. Your presentation date should also be included, please bring it to my attention on your own time if there is an issue.”

Regulus feels a pit of anxiety build in his stomach at the  _ thought _ of that. He'll have to talk to Professor McGonagall, she normally gives him exemptions and alternatives to assignments like this, she’s good like that. 

He doesn’t really listen as she explains what they’re doing, because he really wishes he didn’t have to do it. 

She releases them to work, and Cynthia leans over, “What did you get?”

“Uhh,” He reads the sheet, “Fredrick Allen.”

Cynthia looks at him a moment, “You look nervous.”

“You’re observant,” He deadpans. 

“It’ll be fine Reggie,” She attempts to console, although it doesn’t ease a single one of his nerves, “You could talk to her about it.”

“I’m probably going to,” He sighs, willing away all of the voices in his head that sound concerningly like his mother right now. 

“Don’t beat yourself up about it,” She says, “I can practically hear it.”

McGonagall taps the table and he looks up at her. 

“Talk to me after class, alright?” She quietly tells him, in a voice considered sweet for her. He nods and she smiles at him before continuing to walk around the room. 

“Do I really radiate that much anxious energy?” He asks Cynthia, who nods as she searches through the book. 

“Your anxiety is easy to read sometimes, Reggie,” Cynthia looks over, “If V wasn’t sick he would agree with me.”

“Maybe it’s good that V isn’t here,” Regulus answers. 

“Ehh- No you’re right,” Cynthia laughs, “McGonagall’s eyeing us, do your research before she kills us.”

Regulus looks back over and opens up his book to the page on the sheet, collecting the information and  _ ignoring _ what’s he’s going to have to do with it. 

He’s lucky McGonagall is an understanding Professor. 

***

The room swirls into motion as the kids rush to leave, considering this is almost everyone’s last class of the day. Regulus packs up his things slow, considering he has to stay here anyway. 

“I’ll meet you in the Common Room,” Cynthia says before waving and walking off. 

Regulus slings his bag over his shoulder and walks up to her desk, letting the last few kids leave. She shuts the door behind them and gestures for him to sit. He takes a seat, her doing the same.

“So, Mr. Black, this assignment is one mandated by the Ministry, and typically I would bend the rules,” She sighs, “Unfortunately, I’m being observed on both presentation dates, so I need to have you present.”

Regulus’ nerves stand on end, and considering her change in expression it must be written all across his face.

“I know, I’m not thrilled,” She pauses a moment, “I have confidence in you, Mr. Black. Your presentation date is the 20th, the last one of the 2, and you’re one of the last going. You’ve presented to me before, I think it’ll be fine.”

He hears the door open behind him, turning around to see James rushing in, stopping when he sees Regulus sitting there.

“What are you doing in here, Mr. Potter? Don’t you knock?” McGonagall annoyedly asks.

“No, you know this,” He laughs, waving at Regulus, “Hi Reg!” 

Regulus gives him a half-hearted smile and James takes a seat in the chair next to Regulus, sliding a piece of paper across the table.

“Mr. Potter, do you have  _ no _ consideration for me talking to students?”

“It’s just Reg,” James says, “He  _ lives _ with me, it’s  _ fine _ .”

“That doesn’t mean-” She stops when she sees the paper, pulling it closer, “Is this a detention?”

“Yeah it is!” James exclaims, “First of the year, right from Slughorn!”

“Goodness, I’m so sorry Mr. Black, it seems someone has no intention of letting us finish our conversation,” McGonagall shoots James a look from across the table, “Can you serve this this afternoon?”

“Mm-mm,” James shakes his head, “Remus is beat from the full, he’ll miss me.”

McGonagall just stares at him, glancing over to Regulus.

“He knows! It’s fine,” James clarifies, “Right Reg?”

Regulus absently nods. The phrase ‘Right, Reg?’ has been ingrained into him as something you just agree to, because most of the time it’s not proceeded by anything he’s listening to. Although this time he’s really agreeing because he does know.

McGonagall shakes her head, “I’ve given up, I can’t keep up.”

“We filled you in on this whole summer, can’t believe you’ve forgotten all those details,” James laughs, “You don’t love us that much?”

“Not even close,” She responds, studying the calendar on her desk, “Thursday? I can’t believe I’m bargaining with you on what day you’re serving your detention.”

“Thursday sounds good to me,” James smiles, “So, what are you guys talking about?”

“It’s none of your business, Mr. Potter,” McGonagall shuts him down, “Can we please finish our conversation?”

“I’ll just ask Reg about it later, I’m assuming he’s not failing or anything,” James argues, “Right, Reg?”

Regulus nods again.

“What lesson are they doing?” He asks, “Last year was  _ tough _ .”

“Vanishing spells,” McGonagall answers, “I told you that when you asked the other day.”

“Oh yeah yeah,” James nods, “I remember that now. Those are so fun though, and that project where you research the people? Who failed? That’s going to be me one day.”

“That’s what we worked on today,” She tells him, “And the day I see your name in my books, Mr. Potter, is the day I retire.”

“Do you remember how amazing Sirius and I’s presentation was?” James laughs, “That was the highlight of my academic career. That and the time me and Sirius got to act like animals in Care of Magical Creatures.”

“How could I forget it,” McGonagall deadpans, “Now can you  _ please _ let the two of us finish our conversation?”

“Ok ok, I’ll leave,” James gets up, “Bye Professor! Bye Reg!” 

“Have a nice afternoon, Mr. Potter,” McGonagall bids him goodbye and James slips back out of the room. “Apologies, Mr. Potter has no sense of what is personal, as I’m sure you’ve come to find.”

Regulus nods, he definitely knows that.

“Regardless, I will see if there are any strings I can pull for you,” She sighs, “I’m always open if you need help, but prepare to present in front of the class.”

Regulus nods again, smaller this time.

“I’m sorry, I know this isn’t ideal,” She says, “I’ll see you next class, Mr. Black. Have a nice afternoon.”

“You too,” He gets up, “Thank you.”

“Of course,” She answers, and Regulus walks off out of the room. 

His walk back to the Common Room is slow, not really thrilled with this entire situation. He despises presenting to anyone, and apparently so does his brain, because every time he’s done it he’s had a panic attack either right before or right after. It’s not a positive experience in the slightest, and as understanding as most teachers are, he knows it can’t be avoided. Doesn’t make anything any better.

He walks through the portrait to see Cynthia sitting in the corner with Turtle, the one she has cushioned and somehow claims every time she sits in here. She looks up at him the second he walks in, and he walks over to take a seat next to her.

“Hey Reggie,” She greets, “How’d it go?”

“Not great,” He reaches over to pet Turtle, “It’s mandated.”

“That’s not good,” Cynthia says, “McGonagall is generally good about that, isn’t she?”

“She said she can’t control it,” He answers, “It’s not her fault.”

“I mean, you haven’t presented anything in her class in a while,” She comments, “Maybe it’ll be better.”

“You can think that,” Regulus sighs, sitting back against the wall.

Cynthia looks at him for a moment, “Why do you not?”

“What?”

“Why don’t you think it’s going to be better? I mean, you’re not 12 anymore.”

“I’m still just as messed up,” He says, “Moreso, actually.”

“Hey, don’t say that about yourself,” She scolds, “You’re nothing of the sort.”

“Whatever you say,” He mindlessly answers, not really internalizing what she said. He’s not in the mood to be scolded at the moment.

She gets the message, urging Turtle out of her lap, “I have to drop this off with Slughorn, do you want to come?”

He shakes his head, “I’ll stay with Turtle.”

“I’m sure she appreciates it,” Cynthia laughs before making her way out of the Common Room. Regulus invites Turtle onto his lap, welcoming the warming energy of the cat. Running a hand through her hair is oddly calming, he’ll take what he can get.

Thank god for Turtle.

***

Regulus has been dispising this for two straight weeks.

Now he’s walking into Transfiguration, the pit in his stomach so deep he feels like he’s going to vomit. He takes his seat as quickly as possible, setting what he needs on the desk. He’s watched an entire day of presentations, he knows what he’s doing. Well, right  _ now _ him knows what he’s doing, he’s sure the second he gets up that will all leave him.

Cynthia sits next to him, smiling, “Hi Reggie!”

He looks over and gives her a small smile before looking back at the papers he has.

“How’re you feeling?” 

He holds his shaking hand out as a response, which is actually shaking more than he thought it was.

“Damn,” She sighs, “Just breathe, you have a ton of people ahead of you.”

Vaughn walks into the room, taking the seat on the other side of Cynthia. 

McGonagall calls the class’s attention, giving a simple greeting before calling up the first kid, who Regulus does not listen to in the slightest.

The trend remains through every single kid after that, where Regulus just stares blankly up in the direction of the speaker. Cynthia checks in every so often, to which he fails at assuring her that he’s not on the verge of panicking at the moment.

“Thank you, Mr. Finn,” McGonagall looks at her sheet, “Mr. Black.”

Every eye in the room bores into him as he gets up, walking on his legs that feel like Jell-O. He’s painfully aware of every sound in the room, yet all of his senses are completely drowned out. He’s sure he can get through it until he looks out at the room.

He freezes. Completely. Total shutdown, looking out at the judgemental faces of all the people who have made it very clear they’re against him. The number is much bigger than the last time he stood up here.

He looks down, trying to stop hyperventilating in front of his entire class. Even in the haze he’s in, he hears someone say something, people around them laughing. It’s at him, they’re laughing at him. 

Professor McGonagall walks up beside him and says something, but once again, he doesn’t hear it. He hears her say something to someone else before feeling someone grab his hand. He just follows, recognizing the hand as Cynthia’s. 

She leads him into the hallway, where he leans back and slides down against the wall, sitting on the ground with his knees balled up to his chest.

“Reggie,” Cynthia calls his attention up, too loudly for him, “You’re alright, you just need to breathe.”

He shakes his head at her, he’s too deep. He’s way way  _ way _ too deep.

“You have to,” She says, “You can, I’ll help.”

She does, counting out his breathing for him. It takes a minute of it for him to actually feel like he’s getting air in his lungs. Although it’s nice once he starts calming down, everything that just happened comes back clearer.  _ Everyone _ saw that. This isn’t like what happened over the summer, no one in that room is going to forget that.

Cynthia moves to sit next to him, leaving an inch or two between them, “Are you alright?”

He looks away from her and shakes his head ever so slightly, biting back tears. Everything feels wrong, everything  _ is _ wrong, or at least it seems like that.

“That’s alright,” She consoles, “I’m guessing you don’t want to talk about it.”

He shakes his head because he definitely does  _ not _ want to do that.

“Totally fine, that makes sense,” She nods, “Do you want me to grab your water from inside?”

Regulus shakes his head again.

“Alright, just let me know if you do,” She says, “I’m not going anywhere.”

He nods and rests his head against the wall, taking in his grounding points around him to prevent himself from floating away again. The cold floor, the bright window, the rough wall, the sound of Cynthia fiddling with her ring. God, he feels so horrible.

He has no idea how long they’re out in the hallway before the door opens, Regulus looking up to see Professor McGonagall walking looking down at him sympathetically. She crouches down in front of him.

“Are you alright?” She asks, and Regulus nods. “Class gets out in a couple of minutes, do you want me to bring both of your bags out here so you can avoid the crowd?”

“Yeah, that’d be good,” Cynthia answers, McGonagall getting up and heading back into the room. 

She comes back out with both their bags, setting them on the ground and crouching down to be eye level with them again. 

“I’m sorry, Mr. Black, I know you aren’t comfortable with that, it was inappropriate for me not to listen.”

He tries to tell her it’s not her fault, but he can’t seem to find any of the words, so he settles for shaking his head. 

“If a single one of them gives you an issue, come right to me, I mean it,” She says, “I have plenty of detention slips.”

He gives her what can barely be considered a smile and she stands back up. 

“You two are free to go,” She tells them, “Have a nice day, feel better Mr. Black.”

“Thank you, Professor,” Cynthia gets up and holds out her hand, “Come on Reggie.”

He takes her hand and gets up, still feeling a little unsteady on his feet. He grabs his bag and slings it over his shoulder, not letting go of Cynthia’s hand. 

She leads him back to the Common Room, and up into her dorm. He sheds his bag, robe, and shoes almost immediately, grabbing a seat on her bed next to Turtle. 

“Reggie,” Cynthia grabs a seat next to him, “Are you feeling ok?”

Regulus holds out his perpetually shaking hand again as his answer. 

“Shit,” She breathes, taking his hand in hers, “Do you want to talk?”

“Later,” He tells her, focusing on Turtle. 

“You’re welcome to lay down, get comfortable,” She tells him, “Do you have Quidditch today?”

He nods as he moves back against the back of her bed, calling Turtle to come sit on his lap, the familiar weight serving as something to calm him down. 

“Are you going to go?” 

He shrugs, “I’ll ask Emma.”

“If you feel sick or anything you probably shouldn’t go,” She says, “Do you?”

He shrugs again.

“So yeah you do,” She gets up and goes in his bag, grabbing his water and handing it to him, “You should also drink something.”

He takes the water from her and takes a sip, mad she’s fussing over him. He’ll be fine, he doesn’t need her help, as much as he really appreciates it. 

“I’ll put some music on,” She gets up and goes to turn on the radio, “We can just chill out, I’ll be here if you want to talk or anything.” 

He nods, “Thank you.”

“Of course!” She smiles, grabbing something out of her bag and jumping back into the bed. It looks like schoolwork, although Regulus can’t really see it from where he is. 

He listens to her lightly hum along to what’s playing, leaning his head back and forcibly blocking everything else out.

He just  _ can’t _ wait until the rest of the school hears about this one. 


	45. Leave, James

James walks into Professor McGonagall’s room, Sirius in tow. She looks up at them, confused.

“What are you both doing here?”

“We have a quick question,” James says, walking up and sitting in the chair in front of her desk.

“Oh no,” She looks between the two of them, “I have a feeling I know what you’re asking about.”

“What have the Slytherins been bustling about today?” Sirius asks, “Something with Transfiguration and Reg.”

McGonagall sighs, “Yes, that’s what I thought you were going to ask about. I’m not in a place to tell you, it’s already bad enough.”

“We’re finding out anyway,” Sirius reasons, “We’ll just ask Reg, and he probably will hate that. You’re better off telling us, Professor.”

“You make a point,” She hesitates, “We did presentations today, and as a consequence of being observed every student had to go. He has never been one for presenting, and this was no exception. It was not pleasant for anyone, I think you can fill in the blanks.”

“Shit,” Sirius breaths, “You didn’t hear that.”

“I’ll pretend I didn’t,” She weakly scolds.

“Wait, I’m lost,” James looks between them, “What happened?”

“From what I’m getting, Reg had a panic attack in front of the entire class and  _ that’s _ why they’ve been talking.”

McGonagall nods in affirmation.

“Oh-  _ oh,  _ that’s not good,” James says, “Is that why Emma told me she might be down a player tonight?” 

Sirius nods, looking to McGonagall, “How bad was it?”

“I have no gauge of that, Mr. Black,” She tells him, “I don’t know him that well.”

“We’re not going to see him for  _ days _ ,” Sirius crosses his arms, “Reg is immensely talented at hiding, especially after something like that.”

“Like the two days this summer where I  _ literally _ didn’t see him?” James asks.

“Not to justify his horrible coping mechanisms, but if he doesn’t see anyone they can’t tease him,” Sirius sighs, “Because the definitely will, every single one of those Slytherins who we saw today, James, are horrible.”

“I told him to come to me if anyone says anything,” McGonagall sighs, “I feel horrible about facilitating that, I did my best to keep the kids off the topic but it’s a room of 15-year-olds.”

“Don’t feel bad, Reg has told me you’re his most understanding teacher,” Sirius says, “But he’s not going to tell you, hell, I’d be surprised if he told  _ anyone _ . Although, if you catch me nailing a kid in the face, pretend not to see it.”

“Do not do that,” She warns, “I mean it, don’t.”

“Fine fine,” Sirius concedes, “I just won’t let you see it.”

“Mr. Black.”

“I won’t do it at all,” He reluctantly says.

“I feel so bad for Reg,” James comments, “He’s trying his best. You and him seem to run the whole gamut of problems, Sirius.”

“We’re some messed up kids,” Sirius laughs, “It is what it is, though, can’t change any of it.”

“Ok, let’s stop this conversation before I feel inclined to feel bad for you,” McGonagall stops them, “I also need to finish grading, so if that’s all I ask that you two get on your way, don’t you have things to be doing?”

“Nope!” James smiles, getting up, “Thank you, Professor! See you tomorrow!”

“Bye, boys,” She bids goodbye as James drags Sirius out of the room.

“James, I’m going beat the absolute shit out of the next person who I hear say Reg’s name,” Sirius threatens.

“But you don’t feel bad for him?”

“Nope,” He sighs, “I’m going back, are you coming?”

“No, I’ve got Quidditch in like ten minutes and all my gear is in the locker room,” James says, “I’ll see you tonight, Sirius.”

“Cya, James.”

***

Regulus has been sitting in the same spot for the last 3 hours.

He hasn’t gotten up once, falsely justifying it with Turtle sitting on his lap. He didn’t go to dinner, but he forced Cynthia to. She was clearly hungry, and he wasn’t going to keep her here to look after him, he can take care of himself.

But the room is so quiet. Despite the radio, and Turtle’s loud breathing, it’s empty without her with him. Does he really rely on her that much? He brushes it off as a product of today, not thinking about the fleeting thought too much.

The door opens and Cynthia walks back in, smiling at him with a wrapped plate in her hand.

“Hi, Reggie!” She happily greets, walking over to sit on the bed and placing the plate in front of him, “I know you said you weren’t hungry, but I brought you a plate so you can eat a little when you are. How’s it going? Did you miss me?”

“Deeply,” He softly laughs, looking down at Turtle. He has things he wants to talk about, but he feels uncomfortable saying it. Although, it doesn’t seem he has to.

“You look like something’s bothering you, Reggie,” Cynthia says, “What’s up?”

He looks up at her in almost shock, “How did you know that?”

“I know you well,” She laughs, “Talk to me, what’s on your mind?”

He hesitates a moment, “Did you hear about it at dinner?”

Cynthia doesn’t say anything, although that says enough for him.

He closes his eyes and takes a deep breath, willing himself not to get worked up over it. It’s not like these kids don’t already hate him.

“It’ll be fine, Reggie,” She assures him, “This week’s stories will be old news next week, they’re idiots.”

He looks at her a moment before biting the bullet and saying the first thing that comes to mind, “They should talk about it, it was stupid. It’s  _ so _ simple, stand in front of the room and speak, and I couldn’t even do that.”

Cynthia stares at him, clearly trying to process what just came out of his mouth.

“Sorry,” He apologies, “Forget I said that.”

“No, we can’t brush over that,” She shakes her head, “You don’t have control over your own anxiety, Reggie, it’s not your fault.”

“Yeah- but-” He stops himself, “Just forget I said it.”

She moves a little closer to him, moving the plate out of the way. “You don’t deserve  _ anyone _ being  _ anything _ but nice to you, you did nothing today that would call for that.”

“I’m sorry,” He apologizes again.

“No more apologizing, you’re not doing anything wrong,” She closes the small gap between them, “Do you want to talk through it? I’m ready to listen, whatever you want to say.”

He softly sighs, debating it before saying something. “I wish I was normal, Thia.”

“Hm?”

“No panic attacks, normal anxieties, talking to people,” He pauses for a concerningly long moment, “Things like that.”

Cynthia looks at him with an expression laced in both sympathy and guilt, for some reason. She looks more upset than he does.

“I mean, you’ve been through a lot Reggie,” She puts a hand on his knee, “It’s not easy, and I know I’m not the best person to help, but- you  _ are _ normal, and what you’re saying makes total sense, and you’re totally justified in feeling it- God, I’m sorry, I can’t find the words.”

“It’s fine,” He assures her, “It was uncalled for.”

“No, it wasn’t at all, I asked,” Cynthia says, “I mean it, you can talk to me about that if you want to right now.”

He thinks about her offer a moment. He has a  _ lot _ he  _ could _ talk about, but he wouldn’t dare let most of those words even touch his lips. He’s realizing he has a lot of concerning thoughts that people shouldn’t be hearing, those are just for him. 

So  _ why _ does he feel the compulsive need to spill his guts to Cynthia?

“I watch you, or Sirius, or James, enjoy time with all these people,” He explains, “And I try, I have tried, and I fail every time I talk to someone.”

“You’re better than I remember you being when we were 11.”

“Yeah but-”

“Mm-mm, just because you aren’t perfect doesn’t mean you haven’t gotten better,” She argues, “What matters is that you’re trying, Reggie. You got up there today and made an attempt, forced or not.”

“I mean, besides that, besides academically,” He clarifies, stopping himself from saying what he wants to. Concerning thoughts should stay concerning thoughts.

“Say it.”

He looks at her confused, “What?”

“Say whatever you just thought,” She tells him, “You look like you just thought of something you wanted to say.”

“No -I mean- yeah no,” He shakes his head, “It’s nothing.”

“Just say it.”

He takes a deep breath, “I’m surprised I have you.”

She takes a moment to process that, considering it is a lot. But yet, her reply is relatively quick. 

“I’m not going anywhere, for the record,” She says, “I stay around because I love being around you, you’re more fun than I think you give yourself credit for, Reggie.”

“I-” He struggles for an answer, “I- Really?”

“Completely honest,” She nods, “You know I’m way too mushy to lie to you.”

He softly laughs, because he does know that. Cynthia is a horrible liar.

She opens her arms, “Hug? Please?”

“Fine,” He playfully sighs, and she throws her arms around him. He hugs her back, a little awkward having to do it over Turtle in his lap. She rocks him back and forth and he can practically feel her smiling. He almost feels better as if she has some sort of magic hold on him. 

“What’s this?” She asks, and he sits back in confusion about what she’s asking about. She reaches over and pulls his chain out from behind his shirt.

“Nothing,” He grabs it and tucks it back in, but she just takes it out again. He lets her read it, watching for her reaction. It could go really bad, it could go really really bad. 

Surprisingly, she looks over at him beaming, the two of them impossibly close because of how long the chain is. He feels himself flush red, staring at her.

She moves back, “That’s so cool! I can’t believe you didn’t show me!”

He glances back down at it before tucking it into his shirt, “It was a birthday gift.”

“Now, I’m confused, how have I never seen it?” She asks.

“That’s the goal,” He points out.

“Fair fair,” She laughs, “Do you wear it all the time?”

He nods.

“That’s so cute Reggie,” She comments, cut off by a knock on the door. 

“Who is it?” Cynthia asks.

“Emma.”

Cynthia looks at Regulus, who nods. 

“Come in,” She calls, the door opening and Emma peeking her head in.

“Hey Reg,” Emma smiles, “How’re you feeling?”

“Alright,” He answers, “What’d we work on?”

“Nothing you would have wanted to be there for,” She says, “Mostly, like, speed training and such. You’re already fast, it would have been useless.”

He nods, he wouldn’t have enjoyed that.

“I just wanted to check in,” She says, “Oh, actually, I was told to grab you because you’re needed outside of the portrait by, guess who? James Potter.” 

He sighs, getting up and looking at Cynthia, “I’ll be right back.”

She nods, “Have fun!”

He walks out and down the stairs, seeing James the second he walks out of the Common Room. 

“Reg!” James smiles. “I missed you at practice today!”

“Sorry,” Regulus apologizes, looking around at the people walking in and out. He’s getting weird glances, and if they do not move it’ll just get worse. “Come here.”

Regulus leads James off to a side hallway where no one goes, feeling a little more at ease without the crowds.

“How’s it going?” James asks.

Regulus shrugs because it’s just certainly going. 

“I heard what happened today,” James comments. Although with innocent intent, it terrifies Regulus. “No no, I went to Minnie, we bothered her until she told us because Sirius and I are her favorite students.”

Regulus looks at him skeptically, because he doesn’t believe him.

“I just wanted to come and say hi, see how you were doing,” James says, “You should come by this weekend sometime!”

“When?”

“Friday night? Does that sound good?” He asks.

“I have a night practice,” Regulus tells him.

“Shit, and I have one Saturday night,” James frowns, “Goddamn Quidditch schedules.”

“Aren’t you the captain?” He points out.

“Uhh, maybe I am,” James laughs, “But I  _ can’t  _ have my night practice  _ Friday _ because you guys are there!”

Regulus just shrugs. 

“I’ll get back to you on that one, I have to see when we’re not doing anything,” James tells him, “What’re you doing right now? Are you with that girl?”

“Cynthia,” Regulus reminds him, “Yes, I am.”

“That’s so fun,” James comments, “Sirius’ birthday is coming up, so that’s really exciting right?”

Regulus nods, reminding himself that he has to put together Sirius’ gift. He has it, it’s just not ready to hand to Sirius yet.

“Are you going to come and visit us?” James asks, “I’m guessing you have to drop something off for him, right?” 

Regulus nods again.

“Sirius’ birthday is a very big deal, he holds it to a very high standard,” James laughs, “So as you can-”

“Black!” Someone yells, Regulus looking down the hallway to see none other than Evan Rosier, Ben Flint leaning on his shoulder, “A word?” 

“What do you two want a word with him for?” James turns to face them, his tone immediately shifting from cheerful to deadly serious.

“I don’t think it’s your business, Potter,” Evan snarkily replies, “I’m asking for a word with Black, not you.”

“I think it is my business if you find it important enough to interrupt us,” James steps towards them, serving as a barrier between Regulus and the two at the other end of the hallway.

“Black, tell Potter to piss off right now,” Evan demands, giving Regulus the clear message that the longer James stands here, the worse it’s going to be for him. 

“James,” Regulus calls, painfully quiet but loud enough for it to catch James’ attention, “Go.”

“No way in  _ hell _ ,” James shakes his head before looking back to Evan and Ben, “If you have a problem, you’re welcome to take it up with me here. Nothing you’re doing should be bad enough that I have to leave, right?”

Evan takes out his wand, a sign that Regulus isn’t trying hard enough.

“James, I mean it,” Regulus maintains, “Leave.”

James takes out his wand, ignoring Regulus. Regulus is going to  _ kill _ him, he needs him to leave.

Evan casually points his wand in Regulus’ direction, muttering something before Regulus feels like his shoulder is on fire. Evan’s stinging hex feels like a scorching hex. The sensation creeps up his neck as the conversation continues, feeling like his skin is starting to burn off. It hurts  _ so _ much, but Regulus tries not to react. James doesn’t notice until he takes a glance back.

“Reg?” He walks up to Regulus, who is clutching at his neck. James carefully moves his hand away to see what he’s grabbing at. Upon seeing what is happening, because James needs it to hit him in the face, he turns around and disarms Evan.

“Watch it, Potter!” Ben chimes in, going to cast something but getting easily deflected by James. James bounds their legs not only together, but to one another, before wrapping an arm around Regulus’ shoulder. 

“Come on, let’s go.”


	46. Two Vines

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> does this gift come directly from my other book? yeah. does it matter? nope

James pulls him out of the hallway, ignoring the threats of Evan and Ben. James probably just got him hexed for weeks, thanks, James.

Regulus doesn’t watch where James is walking him, keeping his head down so no one can see the burn mark going up the side of his neck and just above his jawline. He doesn’t need to look in a mirror to know how big it is, he can pretty clearly feel it. 

They walk into the Hospital Wing, and as much as Regulus wishes he wasn’t there, it’s probably best. 

“Hi, Madam Pomfrey!” James happily greets.

“James, what are you- who did you bring?” Madam Pomfrey walks over to them.

“This is Regulus, some asshole tried to scorch his skin off,” James explains. 

“With a hex?” She asks, and James nods, “Can you look up at me, Regulus dear?” 

Regulus looks up at her, letting her run a finger around the burn.

“I have something for that, come sit,” She points to a bed as she walks by, James leading Regulus over to take a seat. “Oh, and watch your language, James.”

“You didn’t even catch it!” He argues across the room, “It’s an immediate reprimand or I don’t have to listen.”

“That’s not how that works,” She replies, walking back over with a container in her hand. She pulls up a chair in front of where he’s sitting, opening what’s in her hand. 

“What’s that?” James asks, his voice filled with curiosity.

“Skin calming serum,” She tells him, “It’s not really a serum, look, it’s more similar to a cream, but I didn’t name it. It works for plant reactions and hexes like this.”

James attentively nods as she explains, seemingly enamored with the subject. It makes sense, considering his mother was a healer. 

“Now, Regulus, how far down your neck is it?” She asks, watching as he points to his shoulder. “Oh goodness, alright, can I have you show me it? Unbutton half of your shirt so I can put this on it for you dear.”

Reluctantly he listens, unbuttoning just enough buttons for her to see his shoulder. She grimaces slightly at the sight, running a painful finger across the side before sighing.

“This is going to sting more before it stops, alright? I don’t want you to pull away, just stay still,” She tells him, and he nods.

She starts to cover it in the strange concoction she has in her hand, admittedly stinging a  _ lot _ . Regulus just looks away, squeezing his eyes shut until it doesn’t burn anymore.

“All finished dear,” She tells him, “Just like new, well, with a little scarring on your shoulder. I’m not sure why, it just happened correct?”

He nods, and James answers, “Like, just just happened, we came right here.”

“You must scar easily, dear,” She sighs, “Let me see if there’s something I can get.” 

She heads over to a cabinet and pulls out something else, walking over and opening it. 

“I know what that is,” James points, “But ours is in French, so I don’t know what it’s called.”

“This is just a general scar salve,” She tells him as she dabs it on the scarred spots on Regulus’ shoulder. She sits back, “Much better, you’re all done, dear.”

“Thank you,” He says, pulling back on his shirt and buttoning it up.

“Now, am I going to learn of  _ who _ did that?” She asks, the question more directed at James.

“Ev-”

“No,” Regulus stops him, “Don’t say it.”

“Why?” 

“Don’t,” Regulus shakes his head, “No one, it’s fine.”

“That was a bad burn, I’d like to know who it is,” She pushes, “You aren’t forced to tell me, but I would like you to.”

Regulus looks at her and doesn’t respond, but she stops pressing.

“I’ll forget the incident report for the moment,” She says, “You both are free to go, thank you, James.”

“Of course!” James beckons for Regulus to follow him, “Come on, Reg, I’m bringing you back like a good guide. I’ll see you later, Madam Pomfrey!” 

“Goodbye James, goodbye Regulus,” She waves as Regulus follows James out of the Hospital Wing. 

“How’re you feeling, Reg?” James asks, looking over at him.

Regulus just shrugs, “Fine.”

“Does that- Does that happen often?” James asks, blunt as ever, “Like, not that that, but something like it?” 

Regulus does not want to have this discussion right now, so he just looks off and doesn’t answer. 

“No, I feel like I need to know,” James presses, “That wasn’t just  _ teasing _ , that was violent, and you didn’t even do anything!” 

Regulus doesn’t answer again.

“Reg,” James wraps an arm around his shoulder, “Come on, at least let me in a little bit, what I saw was so so so unacceptable, not to get all deep or anything.”

“Yes, it does, no, we’re not talking about it,” Regulus answers.

“Why? What did you  _ do _ ?” James questions, “I can’t imagine you doing anything to deserve that.”

How does he  _ politely  _ tell James that he’s purist enemy number 1 at the moment?

“Was it me?” James asks, “Sirius tells me that I shouldn’t talk to you because  _ I’m _ causing you a- shit, did I do that?”

Regulus shakes his head, James is part of it, but not all. Although he probably earned him the scorching hex, they would have faced Regulus anyway.

“Then what?” 

“I don’t know,” Regulus looks over at him, “They just don’t like me.”

James doesn’t seem to want to take that answer. “There has to be a reason.”

“James,” Regulus says, “Drop it.”

James goes to start again, but Regulus shoots him a look and he stops. It’s the first time James has ever made a walk in silence. It’s uncanny.

But James leaves his arm wrapped around him, and for once Regulus appreciates it. 

***

Things haven’t really been looking up, but Regulus couldn’t care less. 

His anxiety has been through the roof and he’s been hexed 4 times in the last two weeks. Apparently, he’s paying for what Sirius did, although he’s unsure _what_ _Sirius did_. That and talking to James, and a little bit of public embarrassment. Such a wonderful mixing pot. 

But none of that matters, today is Sirius’ birthday. The world stops for Sirius’ birthday. 

Regulus recites the password to the Slytherin Common Room before heading up to his dorm and grabbing the wrapped box off of his nightstand. He gets out of the room before anyone else can come back, although he does pass Ben on the way out. He doesn’t see him, though, so Regulus takes that as a good omen. 

He heads over to the Gryffindor Common Room, seeing Marlene outside the door.

“Hey Regulus,” She greets, “James sent me out to get you, so here I am.”

He gives her a small smile and she lets him into the room.

“Do you know where their dorm is?” She asks and he nods. One of those strange things he’s committed to memory. “Cool, I’ll leave you to it,” She says, walking off towards the couch and not even looking back when she bids goodbye, “Nice to see you Regulus!”

He doesn’t feel the need to reply, just heading up to their dorm. He knocks first because God only knows what the two of them are doing.

The door opens, James standing on the other side.

“Reg!” He exclaims.

“Shh!” Sirius shushes him before he can continue yelling.

“Oh- I’m sorry,” James looks back at Sirius and Remus laying together before looking to Regulus and laughing, “Remus isn’t feeling well, and I would tell you that you have to be quiet, but I don’t think you’re going to be the problem in the room.”

Regulus laughs, and James ushers him in.

“Come in come in, come join us,” James steps aside so Regulus can walk into the room, James shutting the door behind him. Sirius urges Remus to sit up, who admittedly looks horrible, and sits up himself. Sirius’ eyes look a red like he had been crying, but he doesn’t look anything but happy.

“You can grab that chair if you want Reg,” Sirius points at the empty chair with a bag sitting on it, “Throw the bag on the floor, it’s mine.”

Regulus listens, pulling the chair up to sit beside the bed. James drags one from across the room, sitting next to him.

“Peter, want to come sit over here with us?” James asks, and Peter shakes his head.

“I’m good over here, I’m working on something,” He replies, “Maybe once I’m a little less not done.”

“Sounds good to me,” James looks back to the three of them, “What’re we waiting for?”

“You,” Sirius and Regulus say in tandem, shooting each other annoyed looks. 

“Telepathic, Remus, I’m telling you,” James shakes his head, “Anyway, we don’t need to wait for me anymore.”

Regulus looks back to James, handing him the box in his hand, “Happy birthday.”

“Thank you,” He smiles, unwrapping it and opening the box. He takes out what’s inside, a ring, two intertwined golden vines, the two ends going in different directions. One goes up, the other goes down. It’s not terribly intricate, just the two twisting stems and some leaves. He turns it around in his hand, likely noticing two small engravings, somehow fitting on the small ring. On the ascending vine is ‘Memento Mori’, Regulus’ favorite saying. On the descending one is ‘Memento Vivere’, which was always Sirius’.

Sirius’ puts a hand to his mouth as he studies it, “Shit Reg, goddamn.” 

“I had Narcissa help me,” He says, “I could have done silver but all your rings are silver.”

“You get to be special,” He laughs, sliding it onto his ring finger, “It fits perfect.”

“I know your ring size.”

“Fair,” He studies his hand, “I love it, Reg, thank you.”

Regulus smiles at him, happy that he liked his gift. Sirius has a thing for jewelry, and Regulus just leans into that. 

“Oh, wait,” Sirius reaches into his shirt and pulls out a chair with a pendent identical to the one Regulus has, meaning Sirius already got the Potter’s presents. “You never told me?”

Regulus pulls his matching one out, “Nope.”

“I can’t believe you kept that a secret,” James shakes his head.

“Some of us can actually keep secrets, James,” Sirius laughs, “You just spill everything you’re told.”

“Ok ok, enough with the James attacks,” James playfully scolds, “Right Remus?” 

“Stop annoying Remus,” Sirius looks over at Remus, “You feeling alright?” 

Remus nods, although not assuredly. 

Sirius lays back down and invites Remus back on top of him. He runs a hand through his hair.

“The full is tomorrow, in case you haven’t realized,” Sirius says to Regulus.

“I figured,” Regulus answers. 

“Are you doing anything Reg?” James asks, “Like, are you in a rush to leave?”

“No,” Regulus shakes his head, “Why?” 

“I didn’t know if you wanted to stay and hang out for a while,” James gets up and heads over to his bed, “You could be Peter and I’s third Exploding Snap player.”

“I hate Exploding Snap,” Regulus says, “I’ll play anything else.”

“I will look for another game,” James concedes, “Come sit on my bed, I’ll pick something.”

Regulus gets up and sits on James’ bed instead, looking over to Remus and Sirius on the other side of the room. Regulus never realized  _ how _ bad the period before full moons are, Remus looks totally defeated in Sirius’ arms. The three times he’s seen him before it he’s looked like this, it’s been bad. No wonder Sirius was worried about the Platform in September.

“So Reg,” James says, sitting back on the bed notably empty-handed, “How have you been?”

“Alright,” Regulus shrugs.

“Are you excited for the game next weekend?” James excitedly asks, “We’re going to crush you.”

“No way,” Regulus shakes his head, “We have you.”

“We’ll just have to see then,” James says before laughing, “Anyway anyway, what was I doing?” 

“Getting a game,” Regulus reminds him, and James nods before getting up.

“Right right,” He pulls open the bottom drawer to his nightstand, “Let’s see let’s see. I think I only have Exploding Snap in here, can we play that?  _ Please _ ?”

Regulus sighs, “Fine, I’ll play.”

“Yay!” James jumps back into the bed, “You’re my favorite, Reg!”

“I better be.”

“Peter, are you playing?” James asks, and Peter shakes his head.

“Maybe in a bit, but not right now.”

“Cool,” James starts to shuffle the cards before dealing them to both of them. James starts talking about God knows what, although it’s welcomed as the only voice in the room. If it was anyone else, Regulus would have left.

But James gets a pass, just a little.


	47. Gryffindor-Slytherin Rivalry

Regulus walks up to the gathering of green Quidditch uniforms, walking up to stand in the space next to Emma.

“Hey Reg,” She greets, “Did you find both gloves?” 

He holds out his hands, which in fact, are both gloved. 

“Perfect,” She nods, “They fit fine?” 

He nods.

“Cool cool,” She looks up at the group of players, chatting amongst themselves, “Hey! Come here, group up!”

Everyone turns their attention to Emma, who points her broom around at the group.

“You all have practiced for hours, you know this game like the back of your hand. You know every call by heart, every maneuver, and you know  _ not _ to do anything stupid,  _ both of you _ ,” She points her broom at both of the beaters, who laugh, “We all are going to kick some Gryffindor ass, fair and square, got it?”

“Yeah!” The group answers, apparently not forceful enough.

“Got it!?” She yells.

“Yeah!” Everyone gets louder.

“You goddamn better!” She laughs, leaning over to see the Gryffindor team breaking away, “Hands in, we’re about to line up.”

“Who gets to lead it?” One of the players asks as they all stack their hands on top of one another. 

Emma looks over to Regulus, who quickly shakes his head. He does not want to do anything like that. 

“You lead it, Jack,” She says, “I’m going to regret that.”

“Hell yeah you are!” He thinks for a moment, “Silence on three, ready? One… Two… Three…”

Everyone pulls their hand out like they would be cheering something but stays dead silent, much to the amusement of Jack, who falls out laughing. It gets everyone else laughing as well, Emma waving for everyone to follow through laughter. They walk up to the already lined up Gryffindor team, pointing down the line. 

“Matchup, come on,” She instructs, “Reg, you’re just going to flip flop with their Keeper.”

He nods and stands across from their keeper, everyone else standing across from their matching teammate and doing the civil pregame ritual of talking to the other team. James stands across from Emma next to him, a look of such focused determination painting his face. Competing against James is going to be a little weird this year. 

“You ready Emma?” James challenges, “We’re going to  _ crush _ you this year.”

“Yeah right,” She rolls her eyes, “Not a chance in hell.” 

“Oh you’re gravely mistaken, we are,” He presses, “Right Reg?”

For the first time probably ever, Regulus shakes his head to a ‘Right Reg?’

“No, you can’t say no to those!” James playfully protests, “You  _ always _ say yes!”

“I don’t agree,” Regulus answers, glancing down to see Slughorn making his way down the line of players, wishing everyone good luck. He walks up behind Regulus and puts a hand on his shoulder, Regulus looking back at him.

“And how are you feeling, my boy?” He booms, “Feeling good?”

He nods, “Mhm.”

“You’ve been a powerhouse at practice, I’ve got lots of faith in you,” He looks over to Emma, “Are you feeling the same way?”

“Of course,” She looks back, “We’re going to crush them.”

“Hey! That’s my phrase!” James protests, causing Slughorn to laugh. 

“Well it’s mine now,” Emma laughs, causing James to jokingly rolls his eyes.

“Good to see you two getting along,” He says, “The Gryffindor Slytherin rivalry is for the pitch only if you ask me.”

“Completely agreed,” James happily replies, “Regulus is actually my favorite person, fun fact.”

“Because I played Exploding Snap with you,” Regulus points out.

“Well, ok yes that,” James holds a finger up, “But other things too, just that’s what I last remember us doing.”

“When did you two become friends?” Slughorn asks, confused. He doesn’t get his answer before the whistle is blown, calling them all up to the entrance boxes. “I’ll interrogate you two later, play a good game out there!” 

“Thank you, Professor!” Emma waves as Slughorn walks back to the Pitch, looking at the rest of the team. 

“You know the deal! Follow me!” 

***

“Regulus Black has caught the Snitch!” The commentator yells, “Slytherin wins!” 

The entire Slytherin stand erupts in cheers, Regulus dusting himself off after the fall he and James just had and extending a hand to help James up.

“We beat you,” He points out, smiling.

James takes his hand and gets off the ground, laughing, “Good game, good game.” 

He pulls Regulus over and ruffles his hair, to which Regulus just rolls his eyes. The whistle sounds, calling them all off the pitch, James and Regulus jumping on their brooms.

“Race you,” James challenges, shooting off in the direction of the exit box. Regulus flies after him, no chance at catching up with that much of a headstart on James’ part. He lands with the rest of the Slytherin team, who are all cheering. 

“Great catch Reg!” Emma congratulates, giving him a high five, “And good game the rest of you! Maybe I’m a little proud.”

“Awww, guys we’ve made Emma proud!” Jack gushes, getting him elbowed by Emma. “Ow! Not needed!” 

“Very needed,” Emma says, holding out her hand to Regulus, “I’ll fly the Snitch back, you go get cleaned up Reg, that was a hard fall.” 

He nods, heading down to shed some of his gear before heading back to the Common Room. His goal is to get there before the flood of people gets there, considering he refuses to use locker room showers. There’s going to be a million people there by the time he gets out, and Quidditch parties are really not his speed, so he is not looking forward to tonight one bit.

His walk back to the castle is actually quite calming, trailing behind a couple of kids who must have left just as the game ended considering how fast they got down. They’re pretty far ahead of him, though, so he barely pays mind to them. 

Regulus makes it up to his dorm, digging around for something else to wear. He goes to open the door to their connected bathroom but sees it locked. He doesn’t want to knock, considering he doesn’t know who is in there, so he just stands by his bed and waits for whoever it is to come out.

Two minutes go by, they don’t, so Regulus decides he has to knock before he gets more dirt everywhere in this room. He walks over and knocks.

“Who is it?” Ben asks.

“Regulus,” He answers, knowing that was a horrible choice.

“Nope, not letting you in,” Ben flatly replies, “Maybe once I finish this Charms work, maybe not.”

Regulus just stares at the door, completely confused as to what the  _ hell _ this is. Why, in an empty dorm, is Ben doing his work in the bathroom? He’s done it before when the room has been too loud, but there’s  _ no one in here _ .

“I don’t hear you walking away,” He says from the other side of the door.

“Let me in,” Regulus demands.

The door opens, a defiant Ben standing behind it. “No.”

And it gets slammed in his face. 

Today was going  _ so  _ well, of  _ course, _ Ben had to go and mess it up. Regulus sighs before walking off, contemplating what he’s going to do. He could just change, but he’s disgusting. He doesn’t have any other room he could go to, unless-

He’s going to have to go to James and Sirius’ dorm, isn’t he?

He takes one last look at the bathroom door, knowing Ben is going to keep being a jerk about it before tossing the clothes he grabbed in a bag and making his way back out of the room. The Common Room is already filled with people, Regulus keeping his head down and sticking to the wall so no one sees him. Luckily no one does, and he takes one of the side passageways that no one uses up to the Gryffindor Common Room.

When he walks out onto the staircase, he walks right into someone.

“I’m sorry!” He quickly apologizes, stepping back and prepping for it to be a Slytherin.

“You’re fine, you’re alright,” They assure him, “It’s just me.”

Regulus looks up to see it’s Lily, smiling over at him.

“Where are you headed?” She asks, furrowing her brow in confusion at the situation Regulus is in.

“Oh,” He searches desperately for an excuse for where he’s going, although he’s saved when he sees Sirius and Remus making their way up the stairs. Perfect timing. 

Sirius immediately notices him, walking over, “Reg? What’re you doing over here?” 

Regulus opens his mouth to explain, but no words come out.

“Come here,” Sirius grabs his arm, looking back at Remus, “I’ll be right up.”

Remus nods and Sirius drags Regulus off into the hallway he took to get here. 

“So what’s up?” He asks, studying Regulus as he does.

“Ben,” He manages to answer, “Won’t let me shower.”

“I’m going to beat the shit out of him,” Sirius huffs before physically shaking the thought off, “You’re using ours, come on.”

Regulus nods, silently sighing in relief that Sirius said it’s alright. He’s not really up to walking around the entire castle in his Quidditch uniform because his roommate hates him. 

Sirius leads him up to their dorm, pointing at the same chair he sat in last time, “You can just sit there until James gets out, although he takes forever.”

“How could I forget,” Regulus deadpans, Sirius laughing as he takes a seat on his bed. Regulus would be hard-pressed to forget James hogging the shower in their bathroom for an hour in the summer. “I’m assuming that in your hand is your clothes?”

Regulus nods.

“Good, cool,” Sirius sighs, “You shouldn’t take that shit, Reg, you could hex the shit out of him if you wanted.”

“I won’t,” Regulus answers. 

“But you  _ should _ ,” Sirius emphasizes, “You don’t have to say a word, you’re telling me you didn’t learn the most disgusting hexes from Bella?” 

“I’m not doing that,” He maintains.

“James told me what happened a couple of weeks ago.”

Regulus rolls his eyes, “Of course he did.”

“How bad did it scar?” He questions, “You scar like crazy.”

“It’s fine,” He brushes him off, not liking the direction of this conversation.

“In no way is something like that  _ fine _ ,” Sirius crosses his arms, “No one should ever leave a mark on you like that.”

“It’s  _ fine _ ,” Regulus repeats. 

“Reg-”

“Leave him alone,” Remus stops him, “It’s not his fault, don’t blame him.”

“I’m not-”

“You kind of are, love,” Remus argues, “Would you say that to me?”

“No, but-”

“Exactly,” Remus says, “So don’t hound your brother about it.”

Sirius sighs, looking only the slightest bit guilty, “Sorry Reg.”

“You’re fine,” Regulus assures him. He knows this is just how Sirius expresses caring. 

“Well anyway,” Sirius says after a moment, “That was a close game, but watching you and James was hilarious.” 

“He was talking to me,” Regulus softly laughs, “The entire time.”

“Of course he was,” Sirius rolls his eyes, “James has endless conversation topics.”

“Speaking of,” Remus cuts in, “Are you going to tell him?”

“Hell no,” Sirius says, “Why would I rob myself of that reaction?”

“You’re horrible,” Remus stifles a laugh, “That’s so mean.”

“It’s not like the three of us didn’t  _ live _ together,” Sirius counters, “The number of times this summer we heard, ‘James! Put a shirt on!’ was stupid.”

“You act like you’re better,” Regulus says.

“Ok look,” Sirius laughs, cut off by the bathroom door opening. James walks out of the small hallway, naturally in just a towel, eyes widening when he lays eyes on Regulus.

“Woah woah, well, hi Reg, but when did you get here?” James asks, clearly very confused.

“A couple of minutes ago,” Regulus answers. 

“May I ask why?” 

“One of Reg’s asshat dormmates was- well, being an asshat,” Sirius says, hanging his head back so he can see James, “So he’s showering in here.”

“Oh, fun,” James walks back off towards his bed, “You’re free to use it now, Reg, there’s an extra towel hanging on the rack.” 

Regulus nods and gets up, heading towards the open door, “Thank you.”

“Of course!” James says before Regulus shuts the door behind him. Through the door, though, he hears the start of what is probably going to be a wonderful conversation for him when he gets out. 

“So Ben fucking Flint…”

***

Regulus steps out of the bathroom, feeling much less disgusting and gross after having both showered and changed. James has yet to put a shirt on, which is completely on brand, and immediately looks up when Regulus walks out. He has a feeling they were talking about something they didn’t want him involved in. 

“Hey Reg!” James happily greets. 

“Hi James,” Regulus replies, walking over to stuff his Quidditch uniform in the bag he brought in.

“How are you doing?” He asks, getting up to actually finish getting dressed, “Did you get hurt at all from that fall?”

“Nothing bad,” He says, “A little bruised.”

“Was that my fault? I think that fall was my fault,” James puzzles a moment, “Oh no wait, yeah it was, whoops.”

“Just a little.”

“Yeah, just a little,” James laughs, “Are you leaving us?” 

Regulus shrugs, awkwardly standing next to the chair, because he has a feeling this is the part where he gets kicked out.

“Slytherin is probably having their party,” James says, “Aren’t you going to go?”

Regulus shrugs again.

“Reg,” Sirius says, calling Regulus’ attention over. He gives him a look pretty clearly asking him if he wants to stay, Regulus giving him a small nod.

“You’re welcome to,” Sirius says.

“James,” Remus looks over to James, “What the hell just happened?”

“They telepathically communicate, I’m telling you!” James exclaims, “All summer, I’m sitting here trying to figure out what they’re saying to one another because they  _ don’t talk _ .”

“Sorry, you’re just not in tune,” Sirius laughs, “Reg is going to stay up here with us for a little bit.”

“Oh! That’s so fun,” James beckons him over, “Come sit over here so you don’t have to be near Pads and Moony while they eye fuck-”

“Hey!” Remus and Sirius yell as Regulus walks over to sit on James’ bed.

“Watch it deer boy!” Sirius scolds. 

“I will literally eat your robes again,” James threatens, “Don’t look at me like that! I’ll do it!” 

“You won’t even be able to find them,” Sirius says, “Good luck.”

Jame gets off the bed and takes a step forward before turning into a  _ stag _ , Regulus staring at him wide-eyed. He knew  _ Sirius _ was an animagus, and he figured his friends were too, but he didn’t know  _ what _ they were. Well, Prongs makes sense then. 

“Reg looks like you just killed someone Prongs,” Sirius laughs, Regulus snapping out of his shock to shoot him an annoyed look. “Hey! Get out of my bag!” 

James, well, stag James, grabs a piece of paper out of Sirius’ bag in the corner with his mouth, walking it over and holding it out to Regulus. Regulus hesitantly takes it, trying to figure out what it is. From the notes written on it, he assumes it’s Remus and Sirius. 

James transforms back out, “This is what your brother does-”

“James!” Sirius gets out of bed, starting towards James. 

“Oh shit,” James curses before turning back into a stag and hurtling over the bed, running away as Sirius turns into a dog and chases after him. The two run around the center of the room after one another, Sirius barking at James. Sometimes Regulus wonders why he tolerates these people.

Granted, it’s kind of funny.


	48. Out of Habit

“Reggie!” Cynthia calls as Regulus walks out of the music room. He spins around to see her running up to him, falling in step as she comes up beside him.

“Hi,” He greets, “What’re you over here for?” 

“I have something to ask you,” She answers, “And you’ve been  _ hiding from me _ .” 

“I haven’t been hiding, I’ve been  _ busy _ ,” He corrects her, “And I saw you yesterday for like 3 hours.”

“But we were studying, that’s different,” She counters, “Whatever whatever, I just want to know if you’re going to Hogsmeade this weekend with anyone.”

“Why would I be?” He puzzles, not quite knowing  _ who _ Cynthia thinks he’s close enough with to earn himself a Hogsmeade trip.

“I don’t know, I feel like I have to ask,” She shrugs, “Would you mind hanging out with me?”

“Sure,” Regulus says, “It’s not like we haven’t gone to Hogsmeade together for the last 3 years or anything.”

“Shh! I just feel like I need to ask!” She pouts, “You’re so  _ mean _ .”

“I’m mean for going with you?”

“Who else would you be going with?” She challenges as if Regulus has ever had a reason to be disappointed about not going somewhere.

“No one, I just wouldn’t go,” He counters, “You put a lot of faith in me to get out on my own.”

“That’s why I’m making you come with me,” She says, “So you can  _ leave your dorm _ .”

“I’m never in my dorm,” Regulus points out.

“Ok, make you leave wherever you hibernate when people are around,” She laughs, “But really, you’re up for it?”

“Mhm,” He nods.

“Yay!” She smiles at him, “The first trip of the year, this is very exciting.”

“Very is a little strong,” He argues, “But yes, I agree.”

“What’re you doing right now?” She asks.

He shrugs, “I was going to see if the piano is open in the Common Room, I wanted to work on something.”

“Can I join?” She asks, “I’ll be quiet, I know you’re stickler about that.”

“I thought you had something this afternoon?” He questions, swearing she told him about hanging out with a couple of friends. 

“Eh, I’ll blow it off,” She says, “They were getting on my nerves today anyways, I’d rather hang out with you.”

“What’d they do?” 

“They- They were just annoying me about something,” She brushes him off, seemingly looking out at something in front of them. “Is that V?”

Regulus looks forward, seeing a kid sitting on top of the very tall archway, carelessly swinging his feet below him. “Yeah, that’s V.”

“V!” Cynthia yells, “What the hell are you doing?” 

“Sitting,” He answers, “Watching all these music nerds coming out of thier practice.”

“Hey! That’s not nice!” Cynthia protests, crossing her arms. 

“Look around you Claire, it’s so right,” He laughs, “Not you though, Reg, you’re the most normal.”

“The most?” Regulus questions.

“I’ll be damned if I call any of us normal,” He says, sliding down the side of the archway and touching back onto the ground, “From that party last week, we’re all alcoholics in the making.”

“Reggie wasn’t there,” Cynthia points out, “Is  _ he _ one?”

“Oh for sure, he’s just an anti-social alcoholic,” V elbows him slightly, “Right?”

“Whatever you say,” Regulus says, continuing back towards the Common Room. 

“What are you two doing?” Vaughn asks, “I’m assuming whatever it is it’s something together.”

“I’m going to watch Reggie play a little bit,” Cynthia says, “I’m blowing off my friends for it.”

“Because they were talking about how you fa-”

“Watch it,” Cynthia stops him, “Don’t say what you’re about to say.”

“Damn, I was hoping to get it by you,” He glances backward, “Oh, there’s Val, I’m off.”

“Bye V!” Cynthia waves as Vaughn heads back to meet up with Val. “Now he’s going to go make out with his girlfriend.”

“That’s all he does when she’s around,” Regulus adds, “It’s almost gross.”

“Almost?” 

“I live with Sirius Black, everything is relative,” He points out, “Have you  _ seen _ him?”

“Ok ok fair,” Cynthia laughs, “Him and his boyfriend are kind of cute though.”

“No actually, not at all,” Regulus shakes his head, “You don’t see the two of them outside of the hallways.”

“How long have the two of them been together?”

“Uh,” Regulus racks his brain for the last time Sirius mentioned it, “Almost a year?”

“Good for them,” She nods as they walk up to the portrait. She tells it the password, the portrait swinging open to let the two of them in. Regulus walks over and peeks down the hallway to the alcove where the piano is, seeing it free. He walks over and takes a seat, pulling the book he wants to work on out of his bag.

Cynthia sits next to him, “I haven’t gotten to watch you practice in a while, this is exciting.”

“You watch me practice all the time,” He looks over at her, slightly confused. 

“I know, but I like watching you practice,” Cynthia says, “It’s interesting.”

“I don’t know how you find it interesting but power to you,” He shrugs, starting to play through what’s in front of him. It’s pretty rough around the edges, and he wants it down before he goes back for break. Mrs. Potter wrote him when he talked about learning from the book she got him saying she was excited to hear what he’d practiced, so now he feels obligated to learn as many of these as he can. Cynthia reserves herself to just listening, at this point she knows he can’t talk while he practices.

After about 15 minutes she leans over and rests her head on his shoulder, effectively scaring him half to death. It’s that  _ positive _ anxiety, butterflies almost, he’s been periodically recognizing for weeks now.

“Sorry, was that too much?” She sits back up.

“You’re fine,” He assures her, “As long as you’re alright with that shoulder moving.”

“That’s fine,” She moves back to lean against him again. He doesn’t know where this habit came from, but she’s started leaning against him way more often. That and hanging on him, but she’s always done that. He almost hates it.

Emphasis on almost. 

***

He and Cynthia have probably been in every single Hogsmeade shop. She just keeps dragging him along, pointing out things she finds cool or, the more frequent occurrence, pointing out things she think he should wear because his wardrobe ‘makes him seem boring’. He doesn’t see it.

“We’ve been walking around for a while,” Cynthia comments, “Want to grab a Butterbeer? Sit down for a little bit?”

Regulus shrugs, “You’re leading me.”

“That’s a yes, come on,” Cynthia changes direction towards the Three Broomsticks, Regulus having to catch up to her. They’re only right around the corner, walking into the bustling room of Hogwarts students. They get seated in a small booth in the corner, looking out at the rest of the room. Regulus immediately spots James, Sirius, Remus, and Peter in the other corner, but he’s sure none of them will notice him. Two of them are not attentive, and Remus and Sirius are facing away from him. 

Cynthia orders a Butterbeer for both of them before looking over at him, “So, are you enjoying yourself?” 

Regulus nods, “Mhm.”

“I don’t know if I buy that,” She hesitates.

“No, I am,” He assures her, “I promise.”

She studies him a moment, seemingly trying to crack through whatever facade she thinks he’s making up.

“I’m not lying, I’m having a good time,” He repeats, “Stop trying to get in my head, I promise you I am.”

“I’m not getting in your head,” She says, “I’m just trying to figure out why you look anxious then.”

“Do I?” He asks, looking down at his hands to see if they’re shaking or anything. They’re not really, he’s not quite sure what she’s talking about.

“I don’t know, maybe I’m going crazy,” She leans her elbow on the table, resting her chin in her hand, “You just look- nervous.”

“I mean, it’s just a lot of people, but that’s always my problem,” Regulus says, “And don’t put your elbow on the table.”

“It’s fine, Reggie,” She brushes him off, “No one is going to  _ scold _ me for it.”

“But me.”

“But you, yes,” She laughs, “No elbows on the table is so outdated.”

“Outdated or not, it’s etiquette,” He points out, their conversation pausing as their drinks get set on the table. They thank the waitress before she walks off, Cynthia taking her arm off the table so she can pick up the drink.

“Happy?” She jokingly asks.

“Very,” He replies, laughing before taking a sip.

“So,” Cynthia starts, “We only have a little bit until Winter Break, are you excited to go back home?” 

Regulus earnestly nods, “I’ve been counting the days.”

“Want to get away from me that much?” She laughs, “Kidding, I get what you mean. I’m going to miss you through.”

“It’s like two weeks.”

“Two weeks too many,” She says, “And it’s weird because I can’t really write you as much, it’s kind of depressing.”

“It’s not for that long,” Regulus reasons, “And we’ll spend like 9 hours with one another on the train home, so I think you’ll get your fix for two weeks.”

“We spend more than  _ 9 hours _ together in two weeks,” She argues.

“Not successively.”

“Ok, fair point,” She admits, “Just let me be sad about missing you! Are you  _ not _ going to miss me?”

“I’m going to miss you,” He says, “I just know it’s not a long time.”

“Ok, Mr. Rational,” She teases, “I missed you so much this summer it was  _ unreal _ . I couldn’t write to you for like a month and a half, that was ridiculous.”

“Thia,” He pleads, not wanting to hear  _ any _ gushing about him. 

“I know you don’t like hearing about how people  _ care about you _ ,” She pokes, “But it’s good for you!”

“Let’s talk about  _ anything _ else,” Regulus says, “Literally anything.”

“Alright,” Cynthia jokingly rolls her eyes, “Have you responded to your cousin’s letter?”

“Which one?” 

“Andromeda,” She clarifies, “I know you responded to Narcissa’s, I was in the room and we walked to the owlery.”

“Goodness, just asking,” He softly laughs, “And no, I haven’t yet.”

“Why?” She questions, “She’s written you twice all year, she always replies so fast, and you just don’t reply. So mean.”

He shrugs, “I haven’t felt like replying, I don’t have anything to say. It’s nothing against her.”

“I’m sure she knows,” She smiles, “You  _ have _ gotten a lot more nice letters this year, though. Not one howler.”

“And God am I thankful for it,” He sighs, “Those were my worst nightmare, the  _ entire _ Great Hall staring at me as I got yelled at by my mother.”

“Now you get to get lovely letters asking how you are and what you’ve been playing recently,” She says, “What a pleasant change.”

“Truly,” He takes another sip of his almost empty cup. He’s enjoying this conversation, and he has a strange feeling once his cup is empty they’re going to get up and keep going. He doesn’t want to go back out onto that street just yet. Although, Cynthia says something before he can even finish the thought.

“Should we order more?”

***

“Pads,” James taps Sirius’ arm, who is currently neck deep in a conversation with Remus, “Turn around, look in the corner.”

Sirius looks back, scanning the two visible corners for what he’s supposed to be looking at. He spots none other than Regulus sitting on the other side of the room, Cynthia sitting right beside him. 

“That’s the girl that fancies him right?” James asks.

“Cynthia, yeah,” Sirius glances back a second time. They seem to be talking, but he just doesn’t like the sight.

“They’re just talking love, stop looking back like that,” Remus chimes in. 

“They’re pretty close,” Peter comments, “I mean, I obviously know nothing about your brother, but he doesn’t seem like you in that regard.”

“He  _ isn’t _ ,” Sirius groans, “You all give me absolutely no piece of mind.”

“You’re his brother, you’re supposed to encourage it, right?” James questions, “Isn’t that how that works?” 

“That’s what I thought,” Peter adds, “But we’re all only children except for you.”

“I’m aware,” Sirius jokingly deadpans, “But- I don’t know, the two of us are just  _ different _ . I don’t know what to tell you all.”

“Let Reg be happy,” James counters, “If he’s happy being around her, she’s not doing anything weird.”

“From what Lily told me Cynthia is not one to do anything rash or stupid,” Remus comments, “And Lily is a pretty safe judge of character.”

“Yeah, that’s a fair point,” Sirius nods, “It’s not that I don’t trust her, it’s just- it’s- it’s that-”

“You don’t trust her,” James finishes for him.

“Yeah, maybe a little,” Sirius admits, “But I don’t trust  _ any _ of the Slytherins, if they have a green uniform they’re up for my distrust.”

“But Reg trusts her, and Reg doesn’t trust most people,” James points out, “You should give him more credit.”

“I do give him credit, I just have my own opinions,” Sirius clarifies, “Reg doesn’t stick up for himself past words, and he barely does that anymore. I’m just keeping an eye on him, because someone has to.”

“Realistically Sirius, he’s got more eyes on him now than he’s probably ever had,” James says, “He easily has you and me, plus everyone he’s been introduced to.”

“I know I watch to make sure no one is doing anything,” Remus adds, “He’s your brother, of course I do.”

“I don’t think I’ve ever seen him outside of our dorm,” Peter chimes in, “But if I did, I would do something, probably.”

“Plus Lily, who said she’d hex someone for him,” Remus says, “And probably Marlene, because she liked him.”

“Oh, and Emma,” James adds, “She said he’s her most tolerable teammate.”

“That’s a little concerning,” Sirius laughs.

“Em doesn’t like a lot of people,” James justifies, to which Sirius nods.

“And then when you add his other friends, her and that tall big Slytherin,” Remus says, “I think he’s pretty protected, Sirius.”

Sirius nods, feeling a slight sense of security knowing if something happened to Regulus that there would likely be someone there to help. It’s one of his constant fears, especially with what happened over the summer and how  _ disgusting _ some of those kids have been. 

“Have we eased a couple of fears?” Remus asks, smiling. 

“Yeah,” Sirius smiles, looking down to the table a moment, “Thank you guys, I just get nervous about him sometimes. It’s a habit.”

“That’s what we’re here for,” James boasts, “Helping you out, helping Reg out, killed two birds with one stone.”

“You love Reg, James, I never thought he would be your speed,” Sirius comments. 

“James likes everyone,” Remus points out. 

“But Reg is fun! He listens to me talk,” James protests, “I like him more than I like the general person.”

“But not more than me,” Sirius says.

“Never more that you Pads.”


	49. Happy To Be Back

5 more days. He gets to go back home in 5 days. He doesn’t think he’s obsessed over passing days more in his  _ life _ .

He walks into the Great Hall for his study period, only to have someone jump right in front of him. He almost panics, but when he sees the red uniform he has a feeling he knows who it is. He looks up and sees James, the exact face he expected. 

“Hi Reg!” He excitedly greets, “Do you have a free period?”

“Mhm,” Regulus nods.

“Do you want to come have lunch with us?” James asks, “We eat in McGonagall’s room, and I’ve been asking if we can invite you for a while but I haven’t caught you so now that I have do you want to join us?”

Regulus takes a moment to process that monster of a sentence before shrugging, “Sure.”

“Yay! Come on,” He beckons for Regulus to follow him as he walks off, Regulus trailing after him. James talks the entire walk there, and Regulus does not understand a word of what he’s saying.

They walk into the room, Peter, Remus, and Sirius all sitting at her desk already. They all look over when they walk in. 

“I got Reg!” James exclaims, “I actually caught him today.”

“He’s not that hard to catch,” Sirius says, “It’s not like he’s going to be lost in a sea of people.”

“But I feel bad if he’s already settled in,” James whines, “Come sit Reg.” 

James grabs a chair and drags it over next to him so Regulus is sitting on the end. James is next to him, then Sirius, then Remus, then Peter. 

“Nice to see you, Mr. Black-” McGonagall stops, “Oh, this is going to be a nightmare.”

“Make it a guessing game,” James says, “Guess which Black you’re talking to.”

“That’ll be pretty easy,” Sirius chimes in, “Is it said in reprimand? It’s me.”

“Ok fair,” James admits before looking back over at Regulus, “Reg, are you excited for break?”

Regulus nods.

“I was telling Sirius, but normally we don’t have the family over for Christmas Eve,” James explains, “So, you might be able to get out of it.”

“I was also talking to Andy,” Sirius leans forward, “She told me to yell at you for not responding to her letters.”

“What does she want me to say?” Regulus asks.

“Literally anything,” Sirius says, “Like, tell her about your day or something.”

Regulus gives him a look telling him that he  _ knows _ Regulus can’t just do that, and Sirius gives him an ‘It literally doesn’t matter’ one back. 

“Stop telepathically communicating!” James crosses his arms, “Do you  _ see _ the two of them, Professor? They do this all the time!” 

“We’ve adapted,” Sirius sits back in his chair, “You’re telling me if you could have conversations without people knowing you wouldn’t? It’s a valuable survival skill.”

“What’re you surviving?!” James frantically asks.

“Do you want to know?” Sirius asks in return. 

“No, no I don’t,” James shakes his head, “Moving on.”

“Why do I let you all eat in here?” McGonagall sighs, “Not you, Mr. Black, you’re fine.”

Sirius jumps at the opportunity, “Rea-”

“Was that in reprimand?” She asks, “Then it wasn’t you.”

“Aww,” He jokingly pouts, “I almost got a little bit of tolerance.”

“No, you love us, right Professor?” James smiles at her, McGonagall rolling his eyes. 

“Sometimes I question that.”

“Regulus,” Remus looks over at him, “Did James steal you from doing anything? I feel like one of us should ask that.”

Regulus shakes his head, “I have a free period.”

“Not with anyone?” Sirius questions.

Regulus shakes his head again, “Care of Magic Creatures runs now.”

“Ah,” Sirius nods, “Can’t believe you took  _ Ancient Runes _ .”

“Ancient Runes is a cool subject,” Remus defends, “Don’t shame the choice.”

“Why don’t you take it?” James asks.

“I take Care of Magical Creatures with you all,” Remus reminds him, “I took it in third year, remember?”

“Right right, yeah,” James nods, “I remember.”

“I’m still mad you dropped the subject, Mr. Lupin,” McGonagall chimes in.

“Honestly? Me too, I  _ hate _ Care of Magical Creatures as a subject, but it’s fun as a class I guess,” He shrugs, looking at Regulus, “Don’t switch out of Ancient Runes, it’s not worth it.”

“I’m not planning on it,” Regulus answers. 

They sit in silence for a moment, Regulus watching as James tries to think of a new conversation topic. It doesn’t take very long.

“Professor,” He leans forward, “Are you doing anything over break?”

“I always say no, Mr. Potter,” McGonagall replies, “What makes this year different?”

“Hey, I always ask,” James points out, “We’re keeping it consistent.”

“James, did you tell her about what you did in Potions yesterday?” Sirius asks.

“Oh no,” McGonagall instinctively replies.

“No no, it’s not bad,” James pauses a second, “It’s a little bad.”

She sighs, “Let me hear it.”

“So, we were supposed to be making something…”

***

Regulus steps onto the packed platform behind Cynthia, scanning the crowd for a face he recognizes. He drags his trunk behind him, full of the stuff he wanted to bring back over break. It isn’t much, but he didn’t bring much to Hogwarts in the first place.

“Reg!” A familiar voice calls his name, Regulus looking over to see no one other than Andromeda walking up, holding a very excited Nymphadora. Sirius and James are already with her, Regulus is a little unsure how they got off that fast. Nymphadora forces her mother to put her down before she runs at him, Regulus crouching down so he can give her a hug.

“Hi Dora,” He greets, laughing. He moves so he can pick her up and stand back up, not wanting to be low to the ground with people pushing their way around the platform. 

“I missed you!” She smiles at him, “Where’d you go?”

“I was at school,” He tells her.

“Oh,” She wraps her arms back around his neck, “I like when you’re here.”

“I like when I’m here too,” He looks over to Cynthia beside him, who he swears is bright red. She’s staring in almost a trance, although it turns into a smile once she realizes he’s looking at her. 

“Is that the girl you were talking about?” She asks.

“Yeah, this is Dora,” He nods, “Dora, say hi to Cynthia.”

“What?” She sits back, looking over at Cynthia next to them, “Hi!” 

“Hi!” Cynthia excitedly responds.

“I like her hair,” Dora points, “It’s pretty.”

“Mhm, it is,” He affirms, not missing Cynthia’s reaction but not understanding why the comment seemed to surprise her.

“Is she your friend?” 

“She is,” Regulus nods.

Cynthia glances over at the clock, sighing, “My parents are going to be getting here.”

“Maybe don’t be seen with me,” He laughs, going to set Nymphadora down to give Cynthia a hug goodbye.

“No!” She shakes her head, burying her face in Regulus’ shoulder.

“Dora, just for a second,” He tells her.

“Mmph,” She protests but lets him put her down. She clutches onto his leg but leaves enough room for him to give Cynthia a hug.

“I’ll see you after break Reggie,” Cynthia says before stepping back, “I’m expecting lots of stories.” 

“I’ll try my best,” Regulus says, picking Nymphadora back up, “I’ll see you soon.”

“Bye Reggie!” She turns to walk off, “Miss you already!”

Regulus rolls his eyes, “Have a good break, Thia.” 

Regulus grabs his own trunk and heads over to where Andromeda, James, and Sirius are all having a conversation.

“Hey Reg,” Andromeda smiles, pulling him into a hug, although a little odd with Nymphadora in his arms, “I’m glad to have you back.”

“I’m glad to be back,” Regulus says, “Why did you come and get us?”

“I just asked if I could,” She shrugs, “I missed you guys, I wanted to see you.”

Regulus nods, “Fair enough.”

“And for her,” She points at Nymphadora, “Who has been incessantly asking for you for  _ two months _ .”

He laughs, looking over at the girl wrapped around his neck, “I can tell.”

“Mrs. Potter did tell me I had to bring you home in a timely manner, because she  _ also _ misses you,” Andromeda looks over to James and Sirius, who are no longer paying attention, “Come on you two, I’m getting you home.”

“Oh, fun!” James turns around to face her, “Shall we?”

Andromeda laughs, “I think we shall.”

***

Andromeda leads them up to the Potter’s door, knocking on the door. It opens practically instantly, Mrs. Potter beaming at them on the other side.

“There you all are!” She steps back, “Come in boys, come in.”

Andromeda takes Nymphadora from Regulus as he walks inside after Sirius. James gets his hug first, then Sirius, then Mrs. Potter walks up to Regulus. 

“It’s wonderful to see you, dear,” She smiles, pulling him into one of her familiar loving hugs. “I’m happy to have you back.”

“I’m happy to be back,” He says, stepping back to smile at her. She looks up to Andromeda, Regulus looking back to see Nymphadora grabbing out for him. 

“I think someone wants you,” She laughs.

“I’m sorry in advance everyone, this is going to go horribly,” Andromeda warns, “Dora, it’s late, we have to go home-”

“No! We can stay, it’s ok,” Nymphadora shakes her head.

“Dora-”

“No no no, staying.”

Andromeda takes a deep breath, “It’s past your bedtime, so say goodbye or we won’t come back.”

“No,” She whines, her bottom lip quivering, “But I want to stay.”

“We’ll be back soon,” She assures her, “Can we say goodbye now?”

“Ok,” Nymphadora agrees, clearly fighting back tears. Andromeda hands her off to Regulus while she goes to bid her goodbye to the other two. 

“I’ll see you soon, Dora,” He says, “Alright?”

She nods, wiping away tears with the back of her hand, “I’ll miss you.”

Regulus feels a pang of sadness at her broken tone, even if she doesn’t understand how time works. “I’ll miss you too, but I’ll see you really soon.”

She gives him a hug before Regulus hands her off to let her say her tearful goodbyes to James and Sirius. He turns to Andromeda, who is smiling over at him.

“Speaking of soon, I got a babysitting job for you next week,” She says, “If you want to, of course.”

“I don’t mind,” He shrugs. He’ll take anything that gets him closer to the feel of this summer.

“I’ll write you once I figure out from Ted what’s happening,” She pulls him into a hug, “Stop pretending you hate it.”

“I didn’t say anything,” He argues, stepping back to look at her.

“I’ll see you soon Reg,” She says, taking back Nymphadora from Sirius, “Oh, and respond to my letters maybe?” 

“I’m sorry,” He apologizes, “I have nothing to say.”

“Even a piece of paper with your named signed works,” She smiles at him, “We’ll work on it.”

Nymphadora mumbles something, Andromeda nodding.

“We best be getting home,” Andromeda says, heading to the door, “It was great seeing you guys, thank you for letting me get them.”

“Of course,” Mrs. Potter smiles, “Have a nice night.”

“You too,” Andromeda waves as she walks out, “Bye boys!” 

“Bye Andy!” Sirius bids goodbye, Regulus waving as she walks out.

“So boys,” Mrs. Potter says, “Get yourself situated in your rooms, and then you can talk my ear off about what I’ve missed, yes?”

“Sounds good to me,” James says, going to haul his stuff upstairs but getting stopped by a voice coming from down the hallway by the living room.

“Do I not get a hello?” Mr. Potter emerges from around the corner, walking up and pulling James into a hug. He does that same to Sirius but spares Regulus the hug in favor of just ruffling his hair. They’re not quite there yet, but that’s fine.

“Ok bye, I’m tired,” James says, starting his way up the stairs. Regulus and Sirius follow after him, Regulus breaking off to go back into his room. He could have  _ cried _ with how happy he is to be back in his room. He’s so glad he’s back.

So he starts to move himself back in.

***

Regulus slides another photo into the album, surprised with how many pictures of him and Cynthia he actually has. Narcissa somehow snagged all of them, and God is there a decent amount. A knock on his door calls his attention up.

“Come in,” He says without missing a beat. Mrs. Potter walks in, shutting the door carefully behind her. Regulus moves the photos out of the way so she has room to sit, which she does.

“What’re you working on?” She asks.

“Putting photos away,” He answers, “Narcissa sent me some I left behind.”

“That’s nice,” She smiles, “What’re they of?” 

“Me and a friend,” He says, searching for one of the most recent ones. It’s of him and Cynthia from the end of year dance last year that they just didn’t go to, instead getting dressed up and sitting in her empty dorm for 2 hours. 

“What’s her name?” Mrs. Potter asks after studying the photo for a moment. 

“Cynthia.”

“James mentioned her,” She nods, “Well, I’m sure he just mentioned everyone in the school, he talked about pretty much everything.”

Regulus laughs, “Sounds like him.”

“I want to hear from you though,” She says, “How has your year been, dear?”

He feels that pit of anxiety open up in his stomach, nervously glancing off elsewhere a couple of times. Mrs. Potter looks at him with concern. 

“Is there something wrong?” She asks, putting a hand on his knee.

“It was fine,” He shakes his head.

“Are you sure?” She presses, that familiar tone of both concern and carefulness coming back, “You know if there’s something bothering you I’m here to listen.”

He contemplates it a moment but just shakes his head. He doesn’t want to dwell on this today.

“Alright,” She gives him a soft smile, “Another day.”

He nods, that sounds much better.

“I do, though, want to hear a little more about this friend,” She says, “Tell me about her.”

Regulus would be hardpressed to turn down that opportunity, considering he’s so overjoyed to be back. He thinks for a moment, puzzling at where to start before deciding.

“So we’ve been friends since first year…”


	50. Familiarity

Someone knocks on his door, “Breakfast, Regulus.”

He sits up and stretches, having probably just slept the best that he has in a  _ while _ . He didn’t wake up once, and by God will he take that. 

Regulus gets out of bed and heads downstairs, hearing someone already down there. He grabs his normal seat at the table, seeing a very tired Sirius leaning against the table. Apparently, Sirius did not have the same night he did.

“Good morning Regulus,” Mrs. Potter greets, setting a hand on his shoulder for a moment as she sets things on the table. 

“Good morning,” He replies.

“How did you sleep?” She asks, “I’m hoping well?” 

“Mhm,” He nods, “Very well.”

“Wonderful,” She sets the last plate on the table and sighs, “Apparently James did too because he doesn’t seem to want to come to breakfast.”

“James was out like a light,” Sirius says, “The second you walked out of the room he was in bed.”

“Of course he was,” She laughs as she shakes her head, walking over to the staircase, “James! Come on!”

“Coming!” James lazily yells back down, Mrs. Potter heading back to the table. Before James can get down the stairs, Mr. Potter comes from around the corner and takes a seat at the table.

“James tired this morning?” He asks Mrs. Potter as she sits down.

“Apparently,” She laughs, looking up the stairs at James making his way down, “Good morning James.”

“‘Morning,” He lazily greets, grabbing a seat in his chair and resting his head on Sirius’ shoulder. 

“James, you went to bed at like, latest 10 o’clock,” Sirius says.

“I’m tired!” He protests, “I was sleeping so well.”

“Well, you can continue sleeping once you have breakfast,” Mrs. Potter points to the table as she goes to fill her plate. Everyone follows, the silence lasting a little longer because James looks like he’s on a slight lag.

“Oh oh,” James looks over to Mr. Potter, “Dad, did I tell you about what happened a couple of weeks ago?”

“Vague question, but I don’t think so,” Mr. Potter says, “Do tell.”

James launches into a story that has Regulus lost from the start, although James has a tendency to do that. Regulus reserves himself to finishing his breakfast with James as background noise. 

Mrs. Potter bumps him lightly, calling his attention over, “Do you have any new pieces I get to hear?”

Regulus nods, “A few.”

“I can’t wait to hear them, you’ll have to leave the door open,” She says, “No rush, though, if you’d rather just relax today. I know that’s what James does.”

Regulus nods, “I’ll probably play today.”

“I’m excited to hear it,” She smiles, glancing over at James, “Did James annoy you all the time at school?”

“Only a little,” Regulus answers.

“Of course he did,” She shakes her head.

“I did not annoy Reg,” James cuts into their conversation, “I was very nice to him.”

“I never said you weren’t nice,” Regulus says.

“Good, because I’m  _ very _ nice.”

“You did slam into me though,” He counters.

James thinks for a moment, “When did I do that?” 

“Like a month into the school year,” Regulus reminds him, James thinking a moment before nodding.

“Oh yeah yeah, I remember that,” He realizes, “I thought you meant at Quidditch practice when we did that fly-by thing.”

“That too.”

“James,” Mr. Potter says, “You never told me who won the game between Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff.”

“Oh! Hufflepuff did,” James tells him, looking back to Regulus, “Their seeker was  _ insane _ at dodging those bludgers, right?”

Regulus shakes his head, “I didn’t go.”

“Wait, you didn’t go?” James asks, Regulus shaking his head again. “Why?”

“Why would I go to that?”

“It’s Quidditch!” James says, “You have to go! Especially because you play, they’re so interesting when you know what’s happening.”

“I’m not standing in that crowd,” Regulus maintains, “Not my speed.”

“That’s fair,” James concedes, “You also didn’t go to the party when you guys won.”

“Again, why would I go?”

“I think spending time with us was much more fun,” He says.

Regulus laughs, “Just a little.”

“Reg,” Sirius calls his attention, “Are you writing Cynthia over break?”

He shakes his head, “Why?”

“Just asking,” Sirius shrugs, “I was just interested if you were.”

“That’s so sad that you can’t write her,” James comments, “I would be so sad if I couldn’t write Remus.”

“Seconded,” Sirius says, “But it’s a good problem to have.”

“Doesn’t sound like one.”

“It is,” Regulus echos. 

Mr. Potter gets up from the table, “Are you boys done?”

All three of them nod, James responds, “Yeah, we’re done.”

“I’ll take your plates,” He starts to grab plates off the table, “Want me to do the dishes, Mia?” 

“That would be appreciated,” She answers, getting up, “You’re excused, boys.”

Regulus, James, and Sirius get up from the table, Sirius and James heading back upstairs. Regulus follows after them to grab the piano book out of his room before heading back downstairs and into the piano room. Once again, the feeling of familiarity wraps around him, the room being exactly as he left it, save for the organizing of a couple of boxes of books. He makes sure not to shut the door.

He sits at the piano and sets the book on the stand, flipping to one of the pieces. He plays through it pretty much flawlessly, proud he managed to get that so down pat. He plays through another, and another, and another, until he reaches the ones he has yet to practice. Being back at this piano is  _ so _ nice, was he really this homesick?

He hears someone knock on the doorframe, turning around to see Mrs. Potter smiling at him.

“Those sounded amazing, dear,” She comments, “Which book is that from?”

He grabs the book and holds up the cover, “One of the new ones.”

She nods and he sets it back on the stand.

“Ok, that’s all I wanted to say,” She says, “As you were.”

He nods and turns back to the piano as she walks out. He looks back to what he was doing before, picking a new piece to work on. He could do this all day.

And honestly? He probably will.

***

He spends most of the day in the piano room, Sirius joining him for a few hours and James joining the two of them for a couple of them. Having dinner back at the table once again brining him maybe a little bit too much joy. 

He has retired up to his room, reserving himself to finishing up one of the books he brought back. He looks over when someone knocks on the door.

“Come in,” He says, Mrs. Potter peeking her head in.

“Are you doing anything dear?” She asks, and he shakes his head. “Do you mind if I come sit for a moment?”

He moves back on his bed, her coming in and shutting the door behind her before taking a seat. He has a feeling this conversation isn’t going to be fun.

“I was talking to James today,” She starts, “And he talked about something that happened with you at school involving  _ quite _ the stinging hex. I know you probably don’t  _ want _ to talk about it, but I really want to know what’s going on at school, dear.”

He contemplates it a moment, but shakes his head, “It’s fine.” He can’t morally unpack that with her, and he doesn’t want anyone else to know he lets that happen to him.

“James said what happened left a scar, can I see it?” She calmly asks, “I won’t be able to do much, but I just want to see how dramatic James is.”

He sighs but pulls the neck of his shirt down to show her what happened. It’s healed a little, but you can still tell something happened there. It doesn’t go past his shoulder, though, the rest of it has healed fine.

“Goodness,” She breaths, running a finger across it before sitting back, “I need you to tell me how you got that, dear.”

“It was an accident,” He lies.

“I don’t think it was,” She shakes her head, “What happened?”

“Did James tell you?” He asks, trying not to have to relay that story.

“He did,” She nods, “If you don’t want to talk about it I’ll take his story.”

“He was there,” Regulus says, “Whatever he said is right.”

“Alright dear, I’ll take his word for it,” She affirms, “But you don’t deserve treatment like that, no one should be even saying anything wrong to you, let alone that.”

He stays silent, not sure what to say.

“I wish there was more I could do,” She sighs, “Hogwarts certainly isn’t the most caring school.”

“It’s fine,” He assures her.

“Treatment like that isn’t fine,” She says, “But I’ll leave it for now. Although, I know I asked you last night but I’ve heard so many stories about James and Sirius’ year I feel like I need to hear some of yours.”

He shrugs, “I don’t really have any that I haven’t told you.”

“Nothing with that girl you were telling me about last night?” She asks, “Cynthia, correct?”

He nods, “Most of the time we’re together we’re either studying or just talking.”

“Not troublemakers like James and Sirius?” She laughs, Regulus shaking his head. “That’s still nice, though, nothing wrong with not causing chaos.”

“I try to avoid it.”

“And goodness am I appreciative of that,” She jokingly rolls her eyes, “The two of them are an unstoppable team, I’ll say that much.”

“Definitely,” He nods.

“Oh! I totally forgot,” She gets up, “I’ll be right back, I have something for you.”

He nods, watching her walk out of the room and hearing her head downstairs. She comes back up only a couple of minutes later, something in her hand. 

“I was going to send these to you, but I didn’t know what you wanted to do with them,” She says, sitting back down and handing him three photos. All three are from his birthday. One of them is with everyone, including Andromeda, Ted, and Nymphadora, another is of just him and Nymphadora, and the last one is him with James and Sirius. He remembers asking about them before he left, because he doesn’t want all of these on him, especially with his roommates. 

“I decided against sending them and waited until you came back home,” She finishes, “I kept forgetting to give them to you today.”

“Thank you,” He smiles, looking over the photos again. He’ll probably leave the one of him, Sirius, and James here, maybe ask for a frame for it. He’ll have to think about the ‘family’ one, if anyone sees that it won’t go well for him. The Nymphadora one is going in his album though, no one can say anything about that. She’s three. 

“Of course,” She answers, “If you want a frame for any of them just let me know.”

He nods, “I will.”

“I’ll leave you to it,” She gets back up, “You know the deal, find me if you need anything.”

He nods again, “Thank you.”

“I’m going to make sure James and Sirius aren’t setting anything on fire. If I don’t see you before you go to bed, goodnight, Regulus.”

“Goodnight, Mrs. Potter.”

***

“Goddamnit!” James curses, having just lost his third consecutive Exploding Snap game against Sirius, “Why can’t we play  _ normal _ rules?”

Sirius doesn’t get to reply before someone knocks on their door, it opening almost immediately. His mother walks in, shutting the door behind her. 

“Hello, boys,” She greets, taking a seat on Sirius’ bed, “Can I ask you two a question?”

“Sure,” James answers.

“Do either of you know what’s happening with Regulus at school?” She asks, “I know I shouldn’t be getting it from you two, but I’m nervous that he won’t tell me, I just need a general gist.”

“Oh,” James looks to Sirius, “I feel like you’re more qualified to explain all the background.”

“I probably am,” He nods, looking over to James’ mother, “So Reg has always been friends with, like, elitist purebloods, it’s one of those stupid traits he absorbed from my mother. Cynthia is pureblood, Vaughn is pureblood, Evan, Ben, Barty, all of them. But, I think you know this, that whole circle of families bends at the will of our mother.”

“Unfortunately I do,” She nods, “She’s powerful in the worst ways.”

“Yeah, so they’re all pretty much forbidden from talking to him- well, me too, but that’s whatever I don’t like them anyway,” Sirius says, “Some of them don’t care, but most of them are just really cruel. They go out of their way to- like, terrorize him. And since it’s Reg, he doesn’t do anything about it. He’s always dealt with bullying, but it got so so so much worse this year.” 

Her face falls, but she doesn’t get to say anything before James jumps in.

“He also lives with them, right?” James looks at Sirius, “Like they’re his dormmates.”

“Evan, Ben, Vaughn, and Theo are his roommates. Ben and Evan are the  _ worst _ ,” Sirius looks back at Mrs. Potter, “After the Gryffindor-Slytherin Quidditch game, I ran into Reg on the opposite side of the castle to the Slytherin dorms because Ben refused to let him shower so he came to use ours.”

“He’s been dealing with all of this?” She asks in disbelief. 

James nods, and Sirius answers, “Yep, and he’ll never tell you a word of it.”

She shakes her head a moment before getting back up, “Thank you, Sirius, I just wanted to know what was going on.”

“‘Course,” Sirius smiles, “If he isn’t telling you I will.”

“And I appreciate it,” She opens the door, “Oh, and don’t make too much noise, I could hear you from Regulus’ room.”

“James,” Sirius looks at James. 

“Whoops!” He laughs, “I’ll be quiet, bye Mum!” 

“Goodnight dears,” She shuts the door behind her, James waiting to hear her go back downstairs before saying anything.

“You really laid it all on, damn,” He comments, “Spared no details.”

“Maybe if he fucking  _ talked _ to people I wouldn’t have to,” Sirius justifies, “But she wasn’t going to get any of it out of him.”

“Fair, but still,” James says, “Although, I kind of get what you mean.”

Sirius sighs, not saying anything but leaning back on his hands. 

“You looked bothered,” James comments.

“Eh,” Sirius shakes his head, “It’s nothing, I’m just nervous about Reg.”

“I mean, he seems alright,” James puzzles, “What’re you nervous about?”

“That’s what I’m nervous about, that he seems alright,” Sirius says, “I’m afraid he’s really not alright and it’s just going to build, you know? And that’s not healthy.”

“Why don’t you talk to him about it?”

“James,” Sirius deadpans, “Reg and I do not get along in that department, remember?” 

“Oh, shit- yeah you’re right,” James nods, “I can talk to him about it. Maybe once we get a little more settled in I’ll see if I can get it out of him if there’s a particularly clear night. He only ever tells me things on that roof.”

“Whatever works,” Sirius laughs, “Should we play another round?” 

“I’m totally in,” James collects the cards, “But can it please be normal rules? Please?”

“Nope!” Sirius chirps, “Bavarian, or I’m going to bed.”

James groans, “Fine.”


	51. Or I'll Die

“Regulus,” Mrs. Potter calls, drawing Regulus’ attention away from the piano and back to her standing in the doorway. She walks in and hands him a letter, “This came for you.”

He nods, “Thank you.”

“Of course, dear,” She smiles before walking back out. He studies the envelope a moment, deducting pretty easily that this is from Andromeda. He opens it, reading the letter inside. 

_ Regulus, _

_ I hope you’ve had a nice first couple of days back. I wanted to wait until the middle of the week to send you something, but apparently, this event is on Wednesday. You get a two-day notice, I think that’s enough. _

_ It’s another Ministry event Ted and I have to go to, and I just wanted to know if you were up for some babysitting. I trust you to come alone if you want, I was babysitting all of you at 15 so I see no problems. If you and/or Mrs. Potter is more comfortable sending the other two idiots that’s fine too.  _

_ Just let me know what the consensus is and if you’re up for it or not. We can always pay the neighbor, but Dora likes you more. _

_ ~ Andromeda (And Ted) _

Regulus gets up and heads out into the Living Room where Mrs. Potter is seemingly working on something.

“Mrs. Potter?” He asks, causing her to look back.

“Hello Regulus,” She smiles at him, “Was that from Andromeda?”

He nods, “She asked if it’s alright if I go over on Wednesday?” 

“Sounds fine to me,” She answers, “Just you?”

“Yeah, if that’s fine,” He says, “I’d rather be alone, but I can go with James and Sirius.”

“Nonsense, I trust you,” She assures him, “That plan is perfectly alright with me.”

“Thank you,” He nods before walking back off upstairs to write his response. 

It ends up being short, just saying that he’s up for that and would rather do it alone. Honestly, it’ll probably be no different without anyone else there. Maybe a little harder without James, but Sirius is utterly useless. 

He seals it and brings it back downstairs, giving it to the Potter’s bird and watching her fly out the window.

“Oh, Regulus,” Mrs. Potter says, “Come here a moment, I don’t think I’ve talked to you about this yet.”

He hesitates a moment, confused about what she’s going to tell him, but he walks over to stand by the side of the couch. 

“Have I told you what we normally do with family around the holidays yet?”

He shakes his head, “James mentioned it once, but that’s it.”

She nods, “So typically Léo hosts rather than us, we all go over there on the 24th. I wanted to give you a fair warning of that, but since they don’t live particularly close, normally we stay over the night before. However, I’m iffy on that this year.”

Regulus apprehensively nods, because that sounds like his worst nightmare. He didn’t like staying  _ here _ with them, let alone staying at  _ their house _ . 

“I’ll have to talk to him about it, but I don’t think we will,” She says, “I wanted to let you know all that just so you’re ready, we can talk about more details once I hear back from Léo, alright dear?”

He nods again, still hesitant about this. Seeing James’ family really didn’t go well last time, and he really doesn’t want to do that again. 

“Don’t stress about it for now,” She says, “We’ll figure it out.”

“Thank you,” He replies before heading back into the piano room and shutting the door behind him. 

One thing at a time, and he’s focusing on Wednesday. 

***

Regulus walks up to and knocks on Andromeda’s front door.

“Coming!” Someone yells from inside, the amount of bustling from the other side of the door increases. He hears someone walk down the stairs and the door opens, a particularly frantic looking Andromeda smiling at him. Although, he doesn’t hear any yelling.

“Reg, perfect,” She steps aside, “Come in come in, sorry, we’re searching for something.”

He steps inside and heads upstairs, Andromeda shutting the door behind herself.

Ted emerges from their bedroom down the hall, holding a folder in his hand, “Found it.”

“Oh thank God,” Andromeda sighs in relief, “Anyway, hi Reg, nice to see you.”

“Hi Andy,” He replies.

“So, I think this event is like 4 or 5 hours long,” She glances back at the clock, “It’s almost four now, we’ll probably be home by 8? Is that alright? We can sneak out earlier if 4 hours is a little too much, I live with her and I totally get it.”

“That’s fine,” He nods, “Not like I’m doing much else.”

“Fair point,” She laughs, “Dora is asleep right now because she told us if she can’t take a nap she’ll die, and that’s not a battle I’m willing to fight.”

“She’ll die?” He questions.

“It’s her new thing, she’ll be like ‘Mum I need ice cream or I’ll die’ and I don’t know where she got it from,” Andromeda shakes her head, “That and she likes to play where’s Dora when she’s right in front of you.”

“How does that work?” He asks.

“You’ll see maybe,” She looks up to Ted, “Are we ready?” 

“I think we are,” He nods, “Thanks for coming to help, by the way, Regulus.”

“It’s no problem,” He assures him.

“We’ll see you in a few hours, feel free to scavenge the kitchen if you or her get hungry,” Andromeda tells him, heading down the stairs after Ted, “Good luck, Reg!” 

“Thank you,” He laughs, waving as they walk out. The house falls quiet, save for the clicking of the heater. He grabs a seat on the couch, taking off the bag he wisely brought because he knew James wouldn’t be available to talk his ear off for entertainment. He savors the silence and pulls out a book he brought. After living with James, he’s almost forgotten what silence sounds like. 

It’s only about ten minutes until he hears the door down the hallway creak open, telltale heavy footsteps coming down the hallway. He looks over as Nymphadora walks up rubbing her eyes, her hair a mess.

“Hi,” She slurs, still clearly sleepy.

“Hi Dora,” He smiles, “Did you sleep well?”

“Mhm,” She climbs up on the couch next to him, “Did Mum and Dad leave?” 

He nods, “Only for a few hours, they’ll be back soon.”

“They don’t have to come back,” She hugs his arm, “I like you better.”

“Good,” He softly laughs, “I’ll be here for a while.”

“Where is James and Sirius?” She asks, looking up at him, “Did they come?”

“Nope, just me,” He runs a hand through her hair to tame it a little.

“What can we do?” She asks excitedly, sitting back.

“Whatever you want.”

“Umm,” She looks around the room, and he has a feeling he knows what she’s going to pick. “Animals?”

He sighs, “Alright.”

“Yay!” She cheers, grabbing his hand and dragging him over to her sprawl of animal toys.

“Only for a little while, ok?” He asks, trying to draw a line. However, she doesn’t listen in the slightest.

“Here, take this one!”

***

It’s about three hours later that she breaks out of her animal character, putting down her toys. He silently thanks the universe for hopefully sparing him from having to play as any more animals, considering he already is responsible for 5 of them. 

“Reglus,” She says, “I’m hungry.”

He nods, “Come on, let’s get something to eat.”

She gets up and grabs his hand as they walk into the kitchen like she is somehow going to lose him in the short walk there. She sits at the table in the corner, which has a bench spanning the length of the table on two sides.

“What do you want to eat?” He asks as if he has any idea where anything is.

“If I don’t eat cereal I’ll die,” She tells him, seemingly dead serious.

“You won’t die,” He laughs, looking around at the kitchen, trying to take a guess at where cereal would be.

“Here here,” She gets up, opening a bottom cabinet right in front of him. Inside are four cereal boxes, and she pulls out the Cheerios one.

“Cheerios?” He asks, and she nods. He starts towards the fridge because cereal needs milk, but she stops him. 

“No no,” She says, “Just that.”

“No milk?”

“No,” She sits back at the table, and he just nods. Strange, but less work and probably less of a mess for him. He opens three cabinets before he finds a bowl, pouring in the Cheerios and putting them on the table for her before putting away the box. 

“Do you want a spoon?” He hesitantly asks, not knowing if she’s going to eat that with her hands.

“No spoon,” She goes to reach into the bowl.

“Hold on,” He stops her, pulling it away, “Wash your hands first, ok?” 

“I don’t have to,” She shakes her head, going to grab for it.

“Yes you do,” He maintains, “Come on.”

She dramatically sighs before following him into the bathroom, getting on the stool. She holds her hands out and he gives her some soap, turning on the water and making sure she actually listens to him. 

She holds her hands out when she’s done, “See? All done.”

“Dry them off,” He points at the towel hanging next to her, turning off the water as she sloppily dries her hands off. She runs back off into the other room, and he walks in to see her already eating. He takes a seat across from her, but she shakes her head.

“No,” She moves over and pats the spot next to her, “Here.”

He gets up and grabs the spot next to her, watching as she carelessly shoves Cheerios in her mouth.

“You can have some,” She pushes the bowl closer to him, “I’m sharing.”

“You are sharing, but I’m alright,” He tells her, “I’m not hungry.”

“Ok!” She happily replies taking back the bowl, “I have a question.”

“What’s your question?” He asked, amused at how formal she told him that. 

“Are you going back?” She asks.

“Hm?” He puzzles, “Back where?”

“Where you were,” She thinks for a minute, “At school.”

“Oh, yeah I am,” He nods, pushing the somber thought out of his head, “Not for a couple of weeks.”

“I don’t want you to,” She pouts.

“I don’t want to either,” He says, “But I’ll be back soon.”

“How soon?”

“Um,” He thinks about the gap between Winter break and Spring break, “Around 4 months.”

“No! That’s long!” She shakes her head, “You need to stay or I’ll die.”

“You won’t die,” He sighs, “You won’t even feel it.”

She goes back to eating for a moment, seemingly processing that information. She takes a second before looking back at him.

“Who was your friend?” She asks excitement creeping back into her voice.

“From Saturday?” He asks, and she nods, although he’s sure she has no idea what that means. “That’s Cynthia.”

“Cyntha,” She tries to pronounce.

“Cyn- _ thi _ -a,” He enunciates. 

“Cynthia,” She repeats. 

“Mhm,” He nods. 

“She was pretty,” She says, “I liked her hair.”

“She’s very pretty, yeah,” He agrees, remembering that he had his photo album in the bad, “I have pictures, want to see?”

“Yeah!” She excitedly replies, “I want to see!”

“Alright, let me get it,” He gets up, but she just gets up after him. 

“I’m coming with you,” She says, grabbing onto his hand, “Come on.”

She practically drags him off into the other room, sitting him down by the corner of the sectional. She points to the corner.

“Lay down,” She tells him, but he just looks at her confused.

He shakes his head, “Why?”

“I want to lay down,” She tells him, “No sitting.”

He apprehensively lays down, moving the pillow so at least his neck won’t hurt. She hands him the book, having gone in his bag for him to get it, before laying down on top of him. He doesn’t  _ quite _ know how he feels about this scenario, but he brushes it off. She’s three, she’ll take deep offense if he says he doesn’t want to lay with her.

“Ok, show me,” She says.

He sighs and flips to where the pictures of Cynthia start, one of them when they were 11. He moves from photo to photo, telling her small stories that seem to appease her need to know about Cynthia. Although he likes talking about Cynthia, so he’ll take the opportunity gratefully.

She makes sporadic comments, asking a billion questions at first but slowly shifting to just a ‘Yeah?’ or ‘Mhm’. Eventually, though, she falls silent, and he looks down to see her asleep. He considers it a little odd since she was just taking a nap a couple of hours ago. Although, he’ll take it because that makes watching her much easier. 

He doesn’t have anything but the photo album, and he can’t reach his bag, putting him in a little bit of a hard place. 

Although, he’s not opposed to just sitting in silence.

***

He drifts in and out of sleep for the next hour, Nymphadora being out like a light the entire time. He does not know what was so tiring, but as long as she’s quiet he’s totally fine with that.

The door opens and Regulus hears Andromeda and Ted walk back into the house.

“We’re back!” Andromeda calls, coming up the stairs and looking over the couch at them. “Holy- you got her down twice?”

Regulus half shrugs, looking down at the slightly less ‘deep sleep’ Nymphadora. 

“When?”

“About an hour ago,” He says, “Maybe a little less.”

“You’re a goddamn saint,” She laughs, sitting down at his feet. Ted comes up the stairs.

“She’s asleep?” He asks, and Regulus nods. “I’ll put her in bed so we minimize the chance of her waking up, thank you Regulus.”

Ted picks her up and carries her off down the hallway, Regulus sitting up for the first time in an hour.

“What got her down?” She asks, “You had to have been doing something.”

“She asked about Cynthia,” He says, catching Andromeda’s confused look. “The girl I was with on the Platform.”

“Ahh, yeah yeah,” She nods, pointing to the photo album on the couch, “Is that the photo album I gave you?”

“Yeah,” He grabs it, “I added new photos.”

“What’d you add?” She moves closer. 

“Guess,” He deadpans.

“Pictures of you and that girl?” She laughs, “You have never mentioned her to me before today.”

He shakes his head, “I did.”

“When?” 

“When you asked me about my friends when we came over the first time,” He reminds her, “I only listed her.”

“Oh- oh oh yeah,” She remembers, “Ok, but like once. She seems to be a very big part of your life, though.”

“I had bigger things this summer,” He reasons.

“That’s a fair point,” She admits, “Show me some of these pictures, you’ve got my interest.”

He flips through to the same one he showed Mrs. Potter the other day, considering it’s probably the best photo he has of the two of them. 

“Was that last year?” She asks, and he nods. “God, you look different.”

“James said the same thing when he looked at,” He flips to the photo of him, Sirius, Narcissa, and Bella, “This photo.”

“Oh yeah, he’s right,” She nods, “I can’t say anything, Ted tells me the same thing when I show him old photos. They just suck the life out of you.”

Regulus nods in agreement, shutting the photo album as Andromeda looks up at the clock. 

“Damn, it’s late, I need to get you home,” She gets up, Regulus following. He grabs his bag and puts the things he took out back in. “Let me see what’s going on with Ted, I’ll be right out.” 

He nods again and she walks off down the hallway, coming back a moment late with Ted in tow.

“Alright, we’re all good, ready Reg?” She asks, smiling. Regulus heads down the stairs and slips his shoes back on, looking up when Ted calls his name.

“Regulus,” He says, “Thanks again, you’re a huge help.”

“Of course,” He answers. Andromeda opens the door for him, and he walks outside. 

“Have a nice night!” Ted calls, Regulus giving him a small wave in response. Andromeda shuts the door and holds out her hand.

“Let’s get you home.”


	52. Meet Fredrick

Someone knocks on the piano room door, Regulus turning around to see Mrs. Potter peeking her head in, “Breakfast, Regulus.”

He nods and gets up, heading out to sit at the table. He really isn’t hungry, considering he got next to no sleep last night. He hasn’t been able to shake the thought of having to see _all_ those people again tomorrow, and it’s starting to eat away at him again. Although, the short notice minimizes the amount of time he feels like vomit from nerves.

Regulus sits down at his spot at the breakfast table watching as James and Sirius stumble down the stairs. Sirius is seemingly _chasing_ James, especially considering the speed at which the two follow each other around the corner and run dangerously close to the Christmas tree, the new addition to the house that got put up while Regulus was gone yesterday. 

“What are you two doing?” Mrs. Potter scolds, “You’re going to knock over the tree!”

James launches himself onto the couch, Sirius tacking him as they yell incoherently at one another. 

“Boys! What are you two doing?” She questions.

“James drew on me while I was sleeping!” Sirius protests.

“You’re arm was just there!” James justifies, “It was so tempting, I couldn’t not!”

“I’m not going to ask,” She shakes her head, setting food on the table, “Regulus, you’re the only sense of normalcy in this house.”

He laughs at her comment, watching as James manages to kick Sirius off. 

“I’m getting you back,” He threatens, getting up, “You better watch out.”

“Ooo, so-” James starts to tease, stopping when Sirius takes his glasses and walks off. “I can’t see without those!”

“Whoops!” Sirius playfully responds, taking his seat at the table. James stumbles his way off the couch and takes his seat next to Sirius, holding out his hand.

“Give them back,” He whines, Sirius reluctantly handing them back. James puts them back on and smiles at Regulus, “Good morning Reg!”

“Good morning,” Regulus replies.

“When did you get up last night?” Sirius asks, “I heard you, I know you did.”

Regulus shrugs, he honestly wasn’t concerned with watching the clock. 

Mr. Potter comes from his room, grabbing his seat at the head of the table, “Good morning boys.”

“Good morning Dad,” James happily greets. 

“So Mia,” He starts, looking at Mrs. Potter as she takes her seat at the table, “What is the plan for tomorrow?” 

“That’s what I was just going to talk about,” She says, “We’re not staying over tonight, but we’re going earlier in the day tomorrow. I told Léo to expect us at around 11 since I still have to help cook.”

“Aww, no fun,” James pouts, “I like staying over.”

“You’ll live,” She tells him, “You’re missing out on one night, we’ll be there all day.”

“Is everyone going to be there?”

“I don’t believe Lionel or Lethia can make it,” Mrs. Potter says, to which Sirius and Regulus both knowingly nod. Christmas Eve events are _not_ something you get to miss. “You seem to both know why?”

“No one misses the Christmas Eve dinner party,” Sirius says, “We always hosted it, and it’s a whole bunch of really powerful people just talking about how much they want to hate crime muggle-borns in one room. That was a _nightmare_.”

Regulus nods in agreement. 

“Every time you tell stories things make more sense, Sirius,” James comments, “Anyway anyway, everyone else?”

“I believe so,” Mrs. Potter nods.

“That house is not big enough,” Mr. Potter shakes his head, “And we’re adding more people this year, it’s just getting more and more packed.”

Regulus feels his anxiety grow at the thought of being confined in a small house with a whole bunch of people he barely knows, this is starting to seem like his worst nightmare. He catches Sirius eyeing him from across the table, but neither says anything. 

“It’ll be fine, it’s not that packed, Fleamont,” Mrs. Potter brushes him off, looking over at Regulus with slight concern, likely at his practically full plate, but not saying anything. He has absolutely no appetite anymore.

“Oh, Reg,” James calls his attention over, “You didn’t tell me how yesterday went.”

“You were asleep,” He reminds him.

“Ok ok, maybe I was,” James laughs, “But what happened? I’m interested.”

“It was just like it was the last two times,” He shrugs, “She kept telling me I had to do things or she would die.”

“What?” James questions, confused, “What does that even mean?”

“Like, she said if she doesn’t eat cereal she’ll die,” He explains, “Or that I need to stay or she’ll die.”

“That is the best thing I’ve ever heard,” James laughs, “She’ll _die_? That’s so dramatic, I love it.”

“I don’t know why all kids do that,” Mr. Potter says, “They just pick things and stick with them. James used to say April Fools all the time to things that were the truth and not in April.”

“He _what_?” Sirius asks, clearly ready to blackmail James with this information. 

Mr. Potter picks up the fork, “He would go ‘This is a fork, April Fools!’ and we’d go no James, that’s not how April Fools works.”

“It was everything too,” Mrs. Potter chimes in, “Every object, ‘This is a box, April Fools!’.”

Sirius is hysterical laughing, “James you know I’m doing that to you from now on.”

“I’m sure you will,” James laughs, “I’m only supporting it because it’ll confuse the other two.”

“James’ favorite thing was repeating phrases over and over,” Mrs. Potter says.

“It still is,” Mr. Potter corrects her, “How many times did he say ‘slam dunk’ yesterday?”

“Why are we attacking me now?” James complains, “This is so rude.”

A couple of chuckles come from the rest of the table, but it falls generally quiet as everyone finishes up breakfast. Regulus eats a bite or two, which he barely manages to force down. This is the part of summer he _didn’t_ want to relive. 

“Are you all done?” Mrs. Potter asks, getting up from the table.

Regulus and Sirius both nod, James answers, “Yep.”

“You’re all excused then,” She says, James and Sirius jumping up from the table and racing upstairs, “Be careful!”

They don’t hear her in the slightest, bulldozing their way into their room.

“The two of them are going to break something,” Mrs. Potter sighs, walking up beside Regulus and putting a hand on his shoulder, “Are you feeling alright, dear? You didn’t eat much this morning.”

“I’m fine,” He assures her, getting up when she takes her hand away to pick up his plate.

“Is it just tomorrow?”

He nods, standing behind the chair and watching as she sets the dishes in the sink.

“I don’t want you to worry too much, I think that everything will be fine,” Mrs. Potter assures him, “We aren’t spending the night, I trust everything will work out. If you need a break you’re always welcome to come find me, dear.”

He nods again, “Thank you.”

“Of course,” She smiles back at him, “I know it’s only morning but try and eat something today, alright?” 

“I will.”

“Good,” She glances up the stairs, where Sirius and James are being awfully loud, “Can you go make sure the two of them aren’t setting anything on fire, dear?”

Regulus goes upstairs, opening their bedroom door to see James pinned down on his bed, screaming like crazy. Sirius is reaching for something on the nightstand.

“Reg!” James yells, “Save me!” 

“Reg do not help him,” Sirius demands, “Hand me that pen.”

Regulus just stares at the two of them, sure this is a rollover from whatever happened this morning. James manages to break away from Sirius, rushing to cower behind Regulus.

“If you can’t see me I’m not here!” Jame calls, trying to hide behind Regulus’ much smaller frame.

“I can literally see you,” Sirius says, “Regulus is way smaller than you are, idiot.”

“No, you can’t!” James argues, “I can’t see you, so you can’t see me.”

“That’s not how that works-”

“Boys, what on _Earth_ is going on in here?” Mrs. Potter asks, stifling a laugh at the chaos.

“Sirius is trying to draw on me,” James complains, “I’m hiding behind Regulus.”

“You’re not hiding at all,” Sirius argues, “I can _see_ you.”

“You two are ridiculous,” She sighs, “Just don’t cause any destruction, and stop tormenting Regulus.”

“We won’t and we’re not,” James answers, “Regulus is going to show me what he was working on last night when I walked in, right Reg?”

Regulus looks over at James leaning over his shoulder. He sighs, “Sure.”

“Yay!” James cheers, “To the piano room we go!”

***

Regulus feels like he’s going to be sick.

He’s at the back of the 5 of them, walking up to Léo’s house. James and Sirius are casually talking in front of him, and he’s trying to hide himself behind the two of them. He really _really_ doesn’t want to go through all of this again. 

Mrs. Potter knocks on the door, Léo answering it. He greets her and invites them all inside, calling everyone else to come say hello. Regulus would prefer they _didn’t_ , but that’s a worthless hope. Their house looks a lot like Andromeda’s, although their downstairs doesn’t look as blocked off and ominous. Regulus follows the shoes off at the door trend before following everyone up the stairs, placing himself at the back, halfway in the living room.

“They’re here?” Haydn asks, peaking around the corner as they come upstairs. 

“No, they’re not,” Léo jokingly deadpans, Haydn rolling his eyes before giving his greetings.

He walks up to James, Sirius, and Regulus last. “Hey guys,” He greets, “Weird that you guys didn’t stay over.”

“Tell me about it,” James answers, “Mum said it wouldn’t have worked anyway, you guys barely have enough room for the three of us.”

“Eh, I beg to differ, but I get it,” He nods, “Did I tell you that we finally got the hole between Tim and I’s room fixed?”

“No, let me see,” James says, Haydn turning to walk towards his room. James grabs Sirius’ hand, who in turn grabs onto Regulus’ arm, James dragging both of them through the mass of adults. Haydn’s room is the one towards the end of the hall, Timothée’s presumably being the one at the end on the right. The hallway has 5 doors in total, and one of them opens just as Regulus walks by. Just by his luck, Timothée slams right into him. 

“Shit-” Timothée puts a forehand on his head where their heads slammed together, “Sorry- uhh, Regulus- wait, when did you all get here?”

“Just now,” Haydn answers for them, “That’s why Dad yelled.”

“Oh, cool,” He nods before slipping by Regulus and heading in to say hello to everyone. 

They follow Haydn into his room, which is decorated with various plants. There’s a vine that’s hanging across the ceiling, seemingly magic considering the way it’s moving. Spanning most of the wall closest to the door is a huge terrarium, although Regulus can’t see if there’s anything in it. The bed is tucked into the far corner, facing towards what looks like a closet. Next to it is a desk, and across from said desk is a dresser, all of which has some sort of plant life on them. 

“See here,” Haydn points to a spot on the wall that has yet to be painted, “We finally fixed it.”

“It’s been _years_ ,” James says, “And you just fixed it?” 

“Tim and I have been asking forever and it’s always ‘We’ll do it soon’,” He groans, “Finally we convinced them, but only after threatening to do it ourselves.”

“Them doing it was the better of the options,” James laughs, looking over to the big tank, “Where’s Fredrick?”

“I think he’s in his house,” Haydn walks over to the far corner of the terrarium, bending down to look in it, “Yep, there he is.”

“Oh! Sirius and Reg haven’t met him,” James points out, “You guys have to meet Fredrick.”

“I’ll take him out, let me rinse my hands first,” Haydn says, “Don’t touch anything, that’s at you, James.”

“I won’t touch a thing,” James promises, Haydn looking at him skeptically before slipping out of the room and going back down the hall. James takes a seat on Haydn’s bed, naturally touching something on his nightstand. 

“That’s not ‘not touching’ anything,” Sirius points out, walking over to sit next to him.

“Shhh, he won’t know,” James replies, quite loudly for trying to keep something secret.

“What am I not knowing?” Haydn says, walking back down the hallway and into the room.

“Nothing!” James says, putting back what he was holding. Haydn just rolls his eyes, opening the top of the tank and reaching in. A small yellow frog jumps right into his hand, and he holds him there lightly with his thumb. He turns around to show everyone.

“This is Fredrick, he’s my frog,” Haydn introduces them.

“He’s the only frog in that thing?” Sirius asks, pointing at the tank far too big for one frog.

“He’s a little spoiled,” Haydn laughs, “But it’s ok because I love him.”

“Does he go to school with you?” Sirius questions.

“Yeah, his tank at school is much smaller than this,” Haydn answers, “Still livable frog size, but not a mansion like this one.”

Sirius nods, looking back around the room.

“Can I hold him?” James asks, holding out his hands.

“You know the drill, rinse your hands first,” Haydn gestures with his head towards the door, “I’m not trying to kill him with your disgusting hands.”

“Jeez, I’m going,” James laughs, getting up and heading out of the room.

“That’ll take him about 10 minutes,” Haydn sits on the bed next to Sirius, “He’s going to get distracted with something.”

“Definitely,” Sirius nods, “He wouldn’t be James if he didn’t.”

Haydn looks up at Regulus, who has been standing by the door the entire time, “You’re welcome to sit, Regulus, you don’t have to stay standing.”

“I’m fine,” He quietly answers, his voice almost failing him. 

Sirius eyes him a moment but doesn’t say anything, James walking back into the room.

“You didn’t get distracted,” Haydn laughs, “Quite the surprise.”

“Why are you _so_ mean?” James dramatically questions, grabbing a seat in the chair at Haydn’s desk. Haydn hands him the frog, James clearly having held it before because he knows exactly how to do it.

“Haydn, question,” Sirius starts, Haydn looking over at him attentively, “Do you go to Beauxbatons?”

“I do,” He nods, “Why?” 

“Do you have to wear the hats?” He questions, “The French flat ones?”

“A beret?” Haydn asks, Sirius nodding. “Yeah, we do, it’s a _French_ school. See, my uniform is hanging in my closet.”

Haydn points in his closet, Regulus leaning over to see a blue uniform hanging in the center, clipped to the hanger is a blue beret.

“Our uniforms are so many more pieces,” James comments, “It’s so unfair.”

“I like our uniforms,” Haydn says, “I think they’re nice, although Tim absolutely does not agree.”

“You guys don’t have house markers on your uniforms, do you?” Sirius asks.

“They’re on a pin, and we get to put the pin wherever we want as long as it’s above our hips,” He tells him, pointing to the uniform again, “Mine is on my shoulder cover, but Tim has his on his hat.”

“Not plastered all over the uniforms like us?”

“Nope,” Haydn shakes his head, “We also don’t have fierce house rivalries, there are stereotypes for houses but none of them are bad, like uh- what’s the evil one at Hogwarts?”

“Slytherin,” Sirius answers, not even paying mind to the fact that Regulus is literally a Slytherin.

“Slytherins aren’t all evil, Reg is a Slytherin,” James chimes in.

Hadyn cups a hand over his mouth. “Shit,” He looks over to Regulus, “Sorry, that wasn’t directed at you, you don’t seem evil.”

“It’s fine,” Regulus answers. He’s well aware of the characterization of the house he’s in, it’s no surprise.

“Well anyway,” James moves them on, “Customary ‘before everyone gets here’ Exploding Snap?” 

“Sounds good to me,” Haydn shrugs, “Put Fredrick back and I’ll grab the deck.”

James listens and puts the frog back, Haydn going in his desk to grab the deck of cards. Sirius moves over, patting the bed next to him. 

“Come sit Reg,” He looks back at Regulus, who does not want to do that, “Not a question, come sit.”

Regulus sighs but takes an apprehensive seat next to Sirius, James grabbing the spot across from him and next to Haydn. 

“So,” Haydn holds out the deck, “Whose dealing?”


	53. Overloaded

They play Exploding Snap for the better of two hours before someone else shows up, simultaneously to Regulus’ relief and dismay. He would love to stop playing, but he also doesn’t want to meet any more people.

“Who just got here?” James questions, straining to hear the voices down the hallway.

“Probably Aunt Esmé and Uncle Sean,” He answers, “And mémé, naturally.”

“Of course, she always comes with them,” James hesitates a moment, “Is it worth going out there?”

“Absolutely not, they’ll come in and say hi,” Haydn answers, “We’re busy.”

Not even a minute later, Esmé peeks her head in the room, “Hello boys.”

“Hi, Aunt Esmé!” James happily responds.

“Come say hi to mémé, don’t make her come all the way down here,” She tells them, James and Haydn both getting up reluctantly. 

James looks back at Sirius and Regulus, “You guys probably can stay here if you want, or you can come with us, doesn’t matter to me.”

“We’ll stay,” Sirius answers, “We’ll be here when you get back.”

“Cool with me,” James shrugs, going down the hallway to greet everyone. 

“Reg,” Sirius says, Regulus looking over, “How’re you doing?”

Regulus doesn’t say anything, giving him a look that tells him to take a guess.

“It’s not that bad,” He says, “We’re just sitting here, you’re fine.”

“Wow, thanks,” Regulus rolls his eyes at the fact Sirius just asked how he was doing to invalidate him. Good one, Sirius.

“I know I can’t fix it, but I’m just saying maybe you would enjoy it more if you committed to joining in,” He explains, “Not just sit there silently.”

“Sirius,” Regulus warns, “Drop it.”

“No, I’m just trying to-”

“You’re not helping,” Regulus cuts him off.

“I’m  _ trying _ to make this marginally more enjoyable,” Sirius crosses his arms.

“It’s not working,” Regulus annoyedly answers, “Drop it.”

“Reg-”

“We’re back!” James runs back into the room, stopping when he sees the likely very visible tension between the two of them, “Something happened while we were gone.”

“Yeah, Reg refuses-”

“Sirius,” Regulus stops him, but Sirius just starts again.

“Reg refuses to let me help-”

“Sirius.”

“Let me finish,” Sirius shoots at him, quite aggressively, “Reg refuses to stop being a downer about everything.”

Regulus suppress a reaction to the comment, feeling the eyes of Haydn and James boring into him. He needs out of this room before he overloads, he can already feel his hands shaking.

“Ok- well-” James struggles for a response, “Reg, come on, let’s see if we can scam food from Mum.”

Regulus listens, getting up and following James out into the room. He follows him down the hallway and into the kitchen, which is arguably worse than what he was just in. It’s filled with every adult except Sean and Mr. Potter, who are in the living room. Dianna is sitting on the counter by where her dad is cooking.

“Mum,” James calls, “What’re you making?”

“The same thing as last time James,” She says, turning back and smiling when she sees Regulus, “Oh, hello Regulus.”

Regulus gives her a weak smile, her grabbing a towel and wiping her hands before leaning over to tell Esmé to take over for her.

“I’m going to grab something from downstairs,” She says, “Regulus, do you mind helping?”

He shrugs, and she gestures for him to follow her as she heads downstairs and into their basement, which is finished. There’s a couch spanning the center of it, a desk on the left, and both a fridge and a chest freezer in the far right corner. Mrs. Potter walks over there but doesn’t open anything. 

“Are you alright?” She asks.

He nods, instinctively apologizing, “Sorry.”

“Nothing to be sorry about, it’s totally alright,” She assures him, “Did something happen or did you just need a break?”

“Just Sirius,” He answers before immediately regretting saying it.

“What did Sirius do?” She questions, a lot less ‘you can answer if you want’ and a lot more ‘tell me what he did’.

“Nothing nothing,” He shakes his head, “I’m sorry.”

“No no, I want to know dear,” She presses, “Was he bothering you about something?”

Regulus shakes his head again, “It’s nothing.”

“I don’t think it’s nothing,” She maintains, not getting to say anything else before footsteps come down the stairs. Around the corner comes Lucette, clearly  _ not _ reading the room.

“Euphemia,” She calls, “Ta nourriture va brûler.”  _ Your food is going to burn. _

“Esmé is watching it Maman,” She says, “I’ll be up in a minute.”

“Finis ce que tu as commencé,” She demands, “Don’t make your sister do it.”  _ Finish what you started. _

“Maman,” Mrs. Potter firmly shakes her head, “J'y serai dans une minute, je parle à Regulus.”  _ I’ll be there in a minute, I’m talking to Regulus. _

“Regulus ne brûlera pas,” She points upstairs, “Talk to him later.”  _ Regulus will not burn. _

Mrs. Potter stares at Lucette a moment before sighing, “Fine, I’ll come back up.”

“Good,” She quips back before turning around and heading upstairs. 

Mrs. Potter gives Regulus, who is sure he looks extremely uncomfortable, a sympathetic look, “I’m so sorry dear, But it seems my mother doesn’t want to leave me alone, I’ll see if I can get you somewhere to cool off.”

He shakes his head, “It’s fine.”

“Are you sure?” She questions, clearly not buying it.

He nods as assuredly as he can. He doesn’t want her going out of her way for that, he’ll just go back to sitting in Haydn’s room.

“Alright,” She sighs, giving him a saddened look before rubbing his shoulder, “I’m sorry.”

“It’s alright,” He replies, although quietly. He follows after her back upstairs, breaking off to head down the hallway to the much louder room. He walks in to see they’ve added Timothée to the group, James sitting in Regulus’ old spot and Timothée in James’. Haydn catches notice of him first, waving at him. 

“Welcome back Regulus,” He greets, pointing to the chair, “You’re free to pull the chair up to the bed, sorry, Tim stole your spot.”

“I stole James’ spot,” Timothée argues, “James stole yours.”

“Whoops!” James laughs, “Pull up the chair, we’ll deal you in.”

Regulus knows it’s just out of caring, but he would rather them not deal him in. He doesn’t want to play anything, he already feels the compulsive need to rub his skin off, he doesn’t need anything else making that worse. 

But yet he grabs the chair and pulls it up to the side of the bed, grabbing a seat and crossing his arms to hide his shaking hands. He doesn’t need any more of Sirius’ comments. 

“Do you want us to deal you in or do you want to just watch?” Haydn asks, much to Regulus’ relief. 

“Just watch,” Regulus manages to answer, upset he’s already starting to lose the ability to speak. 

“Cool,” Haydn looks back to the game, “Sirius, it’s your turn, throw something.”

Sirius looks off from Regulus and throws his card, the game continuing on. They’re loud,  _ really _ loud, and it’s starting to give Regulus a headache every time one of them hits a marginally high volume. He is truly despising this.

After watching two rounds, someone walks down the hallway, Regulus turning around to Léo walking in with something on a spoon. 

“Haydn,” He says, “Try this, does it have enough sour cream in it?” 

Haydn takes the spoon and eats what’s on it before nodding, “Mhm, that’s good.”

“Nice,” Léo answers, Regulus feeling him look down at him, “Are you alright there, bud?”

Léo reaches down and ruffles his hair, which, to Regulus, feels like he just set his skin on fire. He instinctively flinches away, squeezing his eyes closed in an attempt to process a little bit less. He’s way too overstimulated, and he doesn’t want to catch Léo’s likely shocked reaction. 

“Shit- I didn’t mean to- damnit,” Léo stammers, walking away and likely back down the hallway.

“Reg?” James calls, “Are you ok?” 

Regulus doesn’t answer, he doesn’t really process what he said. He knew what the words were, but they didn’t make any sense together. He hears more rushed footsteps come back down the hallway, hearing a voice he manages to recognize as Mrs. Potter’s behind him.

“Regulus,” She says. He knows that’s his name and looks back. “Come here, dear.” She pairs her direction with a gesture, beckoning him over. He gets up and follows her into what he thinks is Fiona and Léo’s bedroom, sitting on the bed next to Mrs. Potter. 

“Do you need my help?” She asks slowly, Regulus shaking his head. He’s fine, he’ll be fine. He can work himself out of it.

“If you do, I’ll be right here,” She assures him, and he gives her a small nod before looking at what he can see looking down. 

He sees his socks, the ones from his birthday. He likes the pants he has on today, they’re one of his only pairs of non-dress pants. He glances at his left hand, which is gripping the bedsheet. He has on a ring, one Cynthia gave him because they have the same ring size. She didn’t want it so he took it. His watch is on that wrist too, it’s always on his left. He looks for something else to root on but his vision blurs, trying to shake it away. It doesn’t work, so he just moves on.

He skips feeling, not needing that right now. He hears the commotion in the kitchen, which is an indecipherable mess of languages. He hears James laughing in Haydn’s room. And he hears his own heartbeat pounding, but quieter than before.

He smells the food in the kitchen, too powerful to pick anything else. Considering he hasn’t eaten since yesterday, he doesn’t taste much either. 

But it doesn’t matter, he’s calmed down enough to look up, seeing Mrs. Potter sitting patiently beside him. 

“Everything alright?” She asks, and he nods. “Anything you need?” 

He shakes his head, even if he did need something there is a 0% chance he can articulate that.

“Do you want to stay in here for a little while?” She proposes, and he nods again. “I’ll grab you some water, you can relax in here until you’re ready, alright?” 

He nods, trying to thank her but failing, coming out as nothing more than a discarded breath, but she seems to get the point anyway. She slips out of the room and shuts the door, coming back not even a minute later with a cup of water in her hand. She sets it on the nightstand.

“Come out if you want some more and let me know if you need anything else, dear,” Mrs. Potter smiles, “You’re sure you’re alright?”

He nods more adamantly than last time she asked because he really is alright. Well, relative to what he just was. This is what he needs, to just be alone for a little while. 

“Wonderful, I’ll leave you be,” She says, heading back out of the room again. Even though he can still hear the sound from down the hallway, it’s quieter than it was before. He feels less like his skin is crawling, which is always good. He brushes away the beginning of tears he managed to bite back, silently congratulating himself for calming down so quickly. 

Although that’s not something to be celebrated, he’ll take it.

***

James leans over to watch his mother walk back down the hallway before shutting the door and sitting back on the bed next to Sirius.

“Was that her?” Sirius asks concern dripping from his tone.

“Mhm,” He nods, “I’m assuming he’s fine or she’d still be in there.”

“Yeah, I don’t think Aunt Effie would leave him if he wasn’t alright,” Haydn agrees, “I wouldn’t be too worried.”

“I’m going to keep worrying,” Sirius sighs, “It’s Reg, he’s amazing at pretending.”

“I think he was a little too deep in that to pretend,” Haydn argues, “I mean, I know you know him well, but I don’t think he was in the mindset to cover that up.”

“Mum wouldn’t have left him struggling,” James says, “I trust her judgment.” 

“Sorry, but what the fuck  _ happened _ ?” Timothée questions, “What did I just watch?”

“I couldn’t tell if that was a panic attack or him being overstimulated, but it was one of them,” Sirius answers, “God, I can never pin Reg’s anxiety, it’s  _ so _ different from mine.”

“Is he- like, ok?” Timothée asks, clearly very confused.

“Yeah, he’ll be fine, he’s just not one for being social,” Sirius sighs, “I think that one was partially my fault, I shouldn’t have gotten him worked up.”

“What did you say?” James questions, “Because we felt it walking in the room.”

“It doesn’t matter,” Sirius brushes him off, “But the way I thought of it and the way that Reg took it were two different things, we do  _ not _ agree on that front.”

“No shit, you never do,” James points out, “He’s probably not dead.”

“Doesn’t mean I’m not going to worry,” Sirius shifts uncomfortably, “Don’t deal me in this round.”

“Are you sure?” Haydn asks, “Just for the round or…” 

“I’ll see,” Sirius leans his head on James’ shoulder, “I’ll just watch for now.”

“I mean, just because your brother isn’t having a good time doesn’t mean you can’t,” Timothée argues, “Kind of a downer if you ask me.”

“Watch it,” Sirius shoots at him, “Thanks for the offer, but I don’t need that right now.”

“I’m just saying-”

“Well stop,” Sirius cuts him off, sitting up, “Just because it wasn’t  _ your _ fault he had a panic attack this time doesn’t mean you get to reem on me for it.”

“Wait, what?” Timothée puzzles, “What did I do?” 

“Let’s drop this discussion for the time being,” James stops them, “Deal us-“

“Timothée! Haydn!” Aunt Fiona screams down the hallway, “Come out here!”

“She sounds mad,” Timothée comments before he and Haydn get off the bed. 

“Hopefully we’ll come back alive,” Haydn says, “Don't miss us too much.”

“We’ll try,” James laughs before waving at them and looking over to a worried Sirius, “You alright?”

“Eh,” He answers, “Just a little nervous, I’ll be alright once Reg shows his face again, he just worries me sometimes.”

“That’s understandable,” James nods, Sirius moving to lay against him again. James runs a hand through Sirius’ hair, which is awfully soft, thinking about what he can talk about. Although, he can’t manage to settle on anything. He’s admittedly a little worried too, but he trusts his mum, so he won’t think about it too much.

“How long until someone else gets here?” Sirius asks. 

“Probably a half an hour or so, Percy and Diane come early,” James says, “They have the triplets.”

“Yeah yeah, I remember them,” Sirius partially nods, “What else special should I expect this afternoon?”

“Well,” James starts, “There’s a couple of things…”


	54. Read?

About a half an hour goes by, Regulus settling for doing absolutely nothing, occasionally hacking on an air-piano the piece he can’t get out of his head. He contemplates  _ maybe _ leaving, but he kind of likes it in here. And he doesn’t want to sit in a pit of anxiety for longer than he needs to.

He hears the commotion down the hall get louder, and it sounds like someone else got here. He can’t decipher who, mainly because he doesn’t know any of James’ family enough to know what they sound like. Although, from the cooing and baby talk, he assumes it’s someone with kids, which really just eliminates Rosetta and Veva. 

He gets his answer, though, when the door slowly opens five minutes later, one of the triplets standing in the doorway with what looks like a book in his hand. The boy walks over to the edge of the bed and tries to pull himself up, although the bed is far too tall. Regulus decides he won’t mind having a three-year-old in here, leaning down to pick him up onto the bed. 

“Hi!” He happily greets, holding out the book, “Lire?”  _ Read? _

Regulus takes the book and studies it, noting first that it’s in French. It’s a book about animals he doesn’t recognize, but he shrugs and answers, “Je peux le lire.”  _ I can read it _ .

“Yay!” He celebrates, moving to sit in Regulus’ lap. Regulus leans over his shoulder as if he was reading to Nymphadora and starts to read through it. Although, the boy stops him on the third page.

“Pig,” The boy points, looking back, “C'est un pig.” 

“Mhm, this is a pig,” He nods, “But, c'est un cochon.”  _ This is a pig _ .

“C'est un cochon,” He repeats, nodding before looking back. Regulus goes to continue reading but stops when someone appears in the doorway. He looks up to see Mrs. Potter.

“Andrien dear, what are you doing?” She asks.

“En train de lire,” He answers.  _ Reading. _

“Regulus,” She says, “Do you want me to take him?”

Regulus shakes his head, “It’s fine.”

“Are you sure?” She asks, “I can just stick him with Fleamont, it’s no big deal.”

“It’s fine,” He assures her, watching as yet another of the triplets slips his way into the room. 

“Simon,” Mrs. Potter picks him up before he can get any further, “What’re you doing?”

“Mon livre,” He points, "C'est mon livre.”  _ My book. That is my book _ .

“Andrien is using it right now honey,” She consoles, “You can take it once he’s done.”

“I want it,” He demands, “C'est à moi.”  _ It’s mine _ .

Andrien chimes in, “Simon joins.”

“Regulus is already-”

“Effie!” Someone yells down the hallway, “Help me with this before it burns!”

She sighs, looking at Regulus.

“I’ll read to them both,” He says, “It’s fine.”

“You’re absolutely sure?”

He nods assuredly, Mrs. Potter walking over to set Simon on the bed.

“Come and get me if they get too much,” She says, “Thank you, dear.”

He smiles at her and she slips back out of the room, leaving the door open a crack as she does. Simon just stares at him, seemingly expecting something. 

“There,” Andrien points to the spot next to them on the bed, Simon sitting and listening as Regulus starts reading again. 

They finish the rest of the book, Simon taking it from him. 

“I will read,” He says, Andrien apparently not liking that and snatching the book back.

“No! He reads!” Andrien hands the book back to Regulus, just for Simon to take it back. “Stop!” Andrien whines.

“I will read it,” Simon answers, moving further away. Andrien dramatically leans over to reach for the book, Regulus waiting to intervene when this gets bad. Which, granted, is almost immediately, because Andrien grabs Simon’s hand to seemingly bite it.

“No no,” Regulus lightly pulls him back, “It’s his turn.”

“Mine!” Andrien cries, “I have it!” 

“You can have it after him,” Regulus says, “Bientôt.”  _ Soon _ . 

“Maintenant!” He argues, crossing his arms.  _ Now _ .

Regulus hears him start to cry, knowing if he doesn’t stop it that it will get just progressively worse. 

“Can you look at me?” He asks, turning Andrien around to look at him.

“I want,” He tearfully tells him.

“I know,” He nods, “But you have to calm down first.”

“No! I don’t!” He shakes his head violently. 

Regulus ignores the headache his yelling is giving him, trying to figure out how he’s going to diffuse this. He’s not a miracle worker, he can manage one kid, not all of them. He hears someone else come in, which is probably why no one has come to help him. Great, fantastic. 

Regulus moves to pick him up and gets off the bed, his legs almost falling out from under him. He peeks around the corner into Haydn’s room, which somehow just has Haydn in it.

“Hi Regulus,” Haydn greets, “Who is that?”

“Andrien,” He answers.

“Oh, that’s not fun,” Haydn holds his arms out, “I can help.”

Regulus walks into the room and hands off Andrien to Haydn, who sits him in front of him. 

“What happened bud?”

“Je le veux,” He crosses his arms, “Livre, je le veux!”  _ I want it. Book, I want it! _

“Who has it?”

“Simon,” He answers, “Mine!”

“How about we do something else?” He proposes, looking around the room, “Want to see the frog?”

“Frog!” Andrien snaps out of his meltdown, nodding, “I want to see!” 

“Come on, get down, he’s over there,” Haydn puts Andrien down on the ground, Andrien rushing over to the tank, “Hands on your head Andrien.”

He puts his hand on his head, Regulus looks at Haydn slightly confused about what that did.

“So he doesn’t touch the glass,” Haydn quietly explains, walking up behind Andrien and crouching to look in the tank. He points into the tank, “There his is.”

“Yay!” Andrien jumps up and down, taking his hands off his head to put his hand on the glass, but Haydn grabs his hands before he can.

“On your head,” He reminds him, Andrien putting his hands on his head again. Footsteps come back down the hall, James walking in first with Francis on his back. 

“Oh, hey Reg!” He happily greets, sitting on the bed. 

Sirius walks in next, Timothée behind him, and seemingly someone else behind him that he’s talking to. Although, they go into Timothée’s room instead. 

“Reg,” Sirius walks up beside him, “Are you alright?” 

Regulus nods. 

“Good,” Sirius sighs, “Sorry about earlier, that one was on me.”

“It’s fine,” Regulus answers, Sirius taking that as an invitation to ruffle his hair. Regulus pulls away from him, “Stop it.”

“But it’s so fun,” Sirius laughs before jumping up on the bed next to James, whose glasses are being stolen by Francis.

“Francis,” James warns, looking back at him, “What’re you doing?”

“I need to see,” Francis puts the glasses on, “I’m James!” 

“You’re me,” James laughs, “That’s right, but  _ I _ need to be me.”

“No no,” Francis gets off the bed and runs down the hallway, “Auntie! I’m James!”

“And there he goes,” Haydn laughs, looking back at James and mouthing, “Think I can get two?”

James nods and Haydn looks back at Andrien, who is fascinated watching Fredrick jump around, “Andrien, how about you go tell mémé about the frog? She wants to know about him.”

“Mémé?” He asks, Haydn nodding. “I tell mémé.”

He heads back off down the hall, calling for his grandmother. Haydn turns around and laughs, “Sorry Aunt Esmé.”

“You’re so mean,” James comments, “Couldn’t have picked Uncle Lucien or something?”

“Nope,” Haydn says, sitting in his desk chair, “He didn’t come to mind.”

“Well we got the kids away, I feel like we need to use this time now,” James looks around the room, “What can we do?” 

“Uhh, I don’t know,” Haydn gets up and goes into his closet, “The only thing else I have in here is Wizard’s Chess, but I suck at it  _ and  _ it’s a two-player game.”

“And I can’t see,” James comments, but can’t finish his statement before being cut off by someone yelling down the hall.

“James! Haydn!” Fiona yells, “Come get Emmy.”

The two loudly groan. “We don’t want her!” Haydn yells back down the hall, “Give her to Tim!”

“Is that what I asked?” She shoots back, “Come here!” 

“Ach du lieber Gott, she’s being such a bitch today,” He mutters before walking down the hallway, coming back a minute later with Embla, who immediately goes to touch absolutely everything. 

“Emmy, not touching,” James scolds, but she doesn’t listen.

“Emmy, stop it,” Haydn grabs her, “Stop, I mean it.”

“I’m not being bad,” She says, taking something that looks like glass off of the desk.

“That’s glass Emmy,” Haydn takes it, “It can break.”

“I won’t break it,” She whines, “Give it back!” 

“Emmy-”

“No!” She hits a decibel that seems to pierce Regulus’ skull.

“If you can’t be good, you’ll go see Dad,” He threatens as nicely as possible.

“But I just want to see it,” She tries to reach up and grab it, but Haydn is much taller than she is. Regulus is about two seconds from walking out of the room, he does  _ not _ want to listen to her scream over what looks like a glass figurine. 

“You can  _ look _ at it, Emmy, not touch it,” Haydn’s voice grows stern, but it gets them nowhere. It just seems to get  _ him _ more worked up.

“I hate you!” She hits him, “Je le veux.”  _ I want it _ . 

Haydn takes a deep breath before handing the figurine to James, “Deal with her for a second.”

“I got it,” He assures him, Haydn walking out of the room and into his parent’s room, where Regulus just was. James, however, does not got it, and cannot get her to stop hitting him for this  _ one _ object.

“Reg,” James looks up at him, “Can you get Mum please?”

Regulus nods and heads down into the kitchen, which is far too many people for his liking. He pushes that anxiety back, looking around for Mrs. Potter. Although, someone in the living room notices him first. 

“Regulus,” Mr. Potter calls, “Are you looking for Mia?”

He nods. 

“She’s downstairs,” He gets up, “Here, I’ll come with you kid.”

Regulus follows Mr. Potter downstairs, seeing Mrs. Potter talking with Fiona and Esmé in the corner by the fridge, the room much cleaner than it was before. Mrs. Potter stops talking and looks up when they round the corner, but Regulus swears he heard his name before that. 

“What do you need, Fleamont?” She asks, Mr. Potter stepping aside so she can see Regulus, “Oh, hello dear. Do you need something?” 

“James needs you,” Regulus tells her.

Mrs. Potter looks at him confused, “Why didn’t he get me?”

“He’s with Embla,” Regulus answers, Mrs. Potter nodding in realization. 

“Alright alright,” She says, “Tell James I’ll be there in a moment.”

Regulus nods and heads back upstairs, going down the hall and into Haydn’s room, where James has Embla sitting in his lap, who is absolutely sobbing, casually talking with Sirius. He’s also holding out the glass thing at an arm’s length, which she keeps eyeing. 

“Oh,” James looks over, “Hi Reg! Did you find Mum?”

“She’s coming,” Regulus tells him, and James nods. 

“Perfect, thank you,” James groans, “Emmy, cut it out.”

“Just give me!” She cries. 

James looks around the room, “Go grab something else,  _ why _ are you so fixated on this?”

She cries louder, James just nodding. 

“That’s about what I expected.”

“Why is she  _ so _ upset?” Sirius asks, “Like, it’s one thing.”

“Oh, I know, she’s just a little bit of a brat,” James answers, looking back to Embla, “I love you Emmy but you don’t know when to stop.”

Mrs. Potter walks into the room, pointing at Embla, “Is that why you need me?”

“Yeah, Haydn needed a minute but I’m not good at this,” He says, shaking the object in his hand, “She wants this.”

Mrs. Potter walks over and takes the figurine from James, Embla reaching for it as she moves it away. Embla gets off the bed to walk over to Mrs. Potter, who is crouched down at her level.

“I want!” Embla continues to cry.

“Why do you want it, sweetheart?” Mrs. Potter calmly asks, lightly stopping her from grabbing the figure. 

“I- I- I want it,” She falters, reaching again. 

“Why? You have to tell me,” She firmly yet calmly demands.

“I want to see,” She tells her.

“You can see it, but you can’t touch it,” Mrs. Potter tells her, holding it up, “See? It’s very pretty.”

“Mhm,” Embla nods, reaching to grab it again.

“No,” Mrs. Potter once again pulls it away, “Look, don’t touch.”

As the two of them go back and forth, one of the triplets, probably Simon, runs into the room and grabs onto Regulus’ hand. He drags him into Léo and Fiona’s room, where Haydn is sitting on the bed. Haydn holds out a book.

“He wants you to read this again,” He says, “I can’t read it, I don’t really know how to read French. You can say no, though.”

“It’s fine,” Regulus gets on the bed and Haydn helps Simon up.

Regulus reads it again, Simon and his strange mastery of language telling him every animal in both languages. Once he finishes Simon takes the book from him and leaves the room, heading down the hall towards the adults. 

“So,” Haydn starts, “How are you doing?”

Regulus shrugs, “I’m alright.”

“Good, that’s good,” Haydn nods, “Are we as bad as we were last time?”

Regulus shakes his head, “I know you now.”

“Fair point,” He hesitates, “I’m still sorry about indirectly calling you evil before.”

“You didn’t know,” Regulus assures him, “It’s just my house, I know what it comes with.”

“That’s so weird because we do  _ not _ have that at Beauxbatons,” Haydn comments, “We have no ‘villain house’, that  _ has _ to be horrible to be in.”

Regulus shrugs, “It’s normal.”

“Still shitty,” Haydn says, glancing out of the doorway, “Good, thought I was going to get in trouble. My mother has been on my ass today, did you hear her before?” 

Regulus shakes her head.

“She got so mad at me for not cleaning the basement,” Haydn groans, “Which I was  _ not _ told to do, which is why we’re not down there. We normally are, for reference, and we probably will be once they stop-”

“Hey!” Someone yells from down the hall, “If you’re under the age of 18, come downstairs!”

“I think I just caused that,” Haydn laughs, “Come on, let’s grab a kid, we’re going to get exiled down there.”

Regulus follows Haydn out into the living room, seeing some of the kids he hasn’t seen yet grabbing the things they were playing with and taking them downstairs.

“Where is Francis?” James says, running his hand along the wall, “I cannot see, where is he?” 

“Your glasses are here James,” Mr. Potter calls from the living room, James slipping by and taking them back.

“Thank you!” He says, grabbing Francis as he walks by and putting him on his back. 

“Be careful going down the stairs with him,” Percy scolds from the kitchen. 

“I will!” 

Haydn sticks Regulus with Andrien, taking Simon for himself. Regulus follows after Haydn, Sirius coming down the hallway and going downstairs behind him. He leans forward and whispers to Regulus.

“You ready for this?”

Regulus is  _ not _ ready for this.


	55. Broken Vase

This is  _ absolute _ chaos. 

Regulus, Sirius, James, Haydn, and Timothée were put in charge, although the first two were kind of implied rather than told. That also means that they get to sit on the couch, although James and Haydn have spent more time being dragged in every direction in the past 15 minutes.

In the corner of the room, Regulus is keeping an eye on Dorita and Sylvia, who are playing the same game but it doesn’t look like it’s going very well. He watches Dorita move Sylvia’s piece backward, Sylvia moving it back forward. They go back and forth a couple of times, getting progressively more heated. 

Regulus reaches over and taps James on the knee, who is facing the other way talking to Haydn. 

He looks back and smiles, “What’s up Reg?”

Regulus points to the corner of the room.

“Hm?” He looks over where he’s pointing before realizing, “Shoot, thank you. Dorita!” 

Dorita looks over, “Quoi?”  _ What? _

“What is going on over there?” He asks, “What are you two doing?”

“We’re playing,” She answers, moving Sylvia’s piece again, “See?” 

“Is that your piece?”

“No,” Dorita answers, “But she goes backward.”

Sylvia shakes her head.

James sighs, “Dorita.”

“No!” She shakes her head, “I’m playing with the rules.”

“Do you need me to come help?”

She shakes her head, while Sylvia nods. James gets up to go fix it. Regulus feels someone tap his leg, Regulus looking over to see Dianna.

“Come play?” She invites him, Regulus nodding. When he played with her last time it didn’t go  _ that _ bad, so this should be fine. She takes his hand and brings him over to a checkers board with no pieces on it. 

“Do you know how?” She asks.

“Mhm,” He nods, “Do you?”

“No,” She shakes her head, “Can you help?”

“I can help,” He says, “Where are the pieces?”

She picks the board up to reveal the pieces stored underneath. Regulus takes them all out and she sets the board back where it was. 

“What color do you want?”

“White, I want white,” Dianna decides, taking the pile of white pieces.

“Put your pieces on the black squares,” He directs, showing her by placing two of his pieces down. She nods, following after him as he puts his in place.

“What now?” She looks up at him. 

“The pieces can move one spot on the black squares,” He instructs, “You go first.”

“Uh,” She looks at the board, moving one of her pieces one black space, “Yeah?”

“Mhm,” He nods, “You got it.”

She smiles proudly, and he takes his turn. They do a couple of rounds before he sets her up for an opportunity to take his piece. 

“Look,” He points at the two of them, “Now you can take my piece.”

“What?” She leans forward, looking at what he’s looking at.

“Move this,” He shows her where it would move, “Here. And you can take this one.”

“Oh,” She looks up at him, “Why?”

“So you can win,” He explains, “You win if I have no pieces.”

“Ok!” She takes his piece off the board, Regulus taking his turn.

They go back and forth for a while, Regulus setting her up to take a few of his pieces and pointing out when she has the opportunity. Eventually, he ends up with one piece left putting it next to hers so she can take it. She does, her face lighting up when she sees he has no more.

“I win?” She excitedly asks.

“Mhm, you win,” Regulus nods, “Good job.”

“Yay!” She claps for herself, “Haydn! I won!”

“That’s good Dianna,” Haydn looks over, “What did you play?”

“Uhh,” She looks up at Regulus for an answer. 

“Checkers,” He tells her.

“Checkers!” She looks back at him, “That’s good, yeah?”

“That’s very good,” He nods, his attention caught by someone behind him. He looks back, “Francis, what are you doing?”

Francis doesn’t answer, the radio switching channels over and over. 

Haydn turns around completely, “Francis, don’t touch that, leave the music on.”

Again, no answer, just more radio channel flipping. Haydn nudges Timothée and points to Francis, Timothée going and grabbing him away from the radio. He protests, naturally, but Timothée gets to set the radio back to what it was.

Haydn reaches over the couch, “Francis, come-”

He’s abruptly cut off by something shattering, Regulus turning around to see pieces of a vase everywhere and water all over the floor, the small table that the vase was on tipped over. Embla looking down in shock at Andrien, who's sitting in the middle of it wailing. Regulus sees his arm bleeding and thinks it better to go over and help. 

Regulus looks down at his arm, which got cut pretty bad. Embla is explaining to Haydn what happened, for some reason with a piece of glass in her hand. Haydn tries to take it from her, but she pulls away from him, slicing Regulus directly under the corner of his eye. Regulus puts a hand on the spot and turns the other way, reminding himself that that wasn’t his mother. He’s not somewhere he loves, but he’s not at Grimmauld. 

Someone puts a hand on his shoulder, “Reg.”

Regulus looks back and sees Sirius, looking at him concerned.

“Are you ok? What happened?” He asks, Regulus seeing James walk up behind him.

“Ok, hold on,” Haydn walks off, coming back a second later with a box of tissues, “Here, James, go get Aunt Effie.” 

“We’re going to get in  _ so _ much trouble,” Timothée comments, holding Francis’ hands above his head so he doesn’t run away.

Regulus decides Andrien is probably more important than he is, taking a tissue and wiping away the cut. Sirius moving to sit beside him.

“Don’t move,” He tells him as he looks at the cut before covering it, “Not the worst you’ve gotten.”

“Far from it,” Regulus comments, trying to hold Andrien still. James comes down the stairs first, Mrs. Potter directly behind him. 

“Goodness, what happened down here?” She asks, looking between James, Haydn, and Timothée.

“Emmy said she was playing with Andrien when he fell into the table,” Haydn points, “It had a vase on it.”

“Your mother keeps the box I gave her down here, right?” She asks, moving back towards the doorway.

“No, it’s upstairs,” Haydn shakes his head.

Mrs. Potter sighs, “James, you’re more nimble than I am, go upstairs and grab the first aid box, it looks like the one we have.”

“Ok,” He nods before heading upstairs. Mrs. Potter crouches down next to Sirius, careful of the glass. 

“Here, let’s move you,” She leans forward and grabs Andrien, who latches right on. She taps Sirius on the shoulder, “Can I see the cut for a second?”

He moves what he’s holding out of the way, Mrs. Potter running a finger along it. Regulus doesn’t move, although he wants to.

“Oh mon Dieu,” She sighs, sitting back, “Are you alright, dear?”

Regulus nods, it’s nothing big. A little close to his eye yes, but nothing big.

“Here,” James walks in the room, holding out a box similar to the one they have at home, although a little smaller. Mrs. Potter takes it and gets up, walking over to the couch.

“Come sit over here, I’ll fix that for you,” She says as she walks off, Regulus taking the tissue from Sirius and sitting next to where she is trying to console a sobbing Andrien in her lap. He refuses to let her touch his arm. Sirius walks up behind Regulus, leaning over the back of the couch.

“Do you want me to hold him, Mum?” James asks, vaulting over the couch to sit on the other side of her.

“Don’t do that,” She scolds, “But yes, it should only take a second Andrien-”

“No no no!” He shakes his head, “No touching.”

“What is going  _ on _ down here?” Someone yells down the stairs, Regulus turning around to see Fiona rounding the corner, “Why is  _ he _ crying and why is _ that _ broken?”

Haydn tries to explain, “Emmy and him were playing and he fell into the table-”

“Did he get hurt?” She asks, clearly aggravated.

“It’s just a cut on his arm,” Haydn assures her, although it doesn’t work.

“Why weren’t you watching them? They shouldn’t be running around,” She scolds, “You’re down here to watch them, Haydn.”

“I was watching them, in addition to the other, what, 10 kids?” He argues back, “I was talking to Dianna about how she won a game and telling Francis to not touch the radio.”

“And you’re telling me you didn’t see that?”

“I didn’t, I’m sorry,” He half-apologies, but it sounds more like an argument, “I wasn’t watching, but neither was James  _ or _ Tim.”

“I’m not concerned about them, I’m concerned about you,” She says, “This is our house,  _ you’re  _ watching the kids.”

“What- That makes no sense,” He argues, “We watch them together, and we  _ all _ missed it.”

“I’m talking-”

“To me, yeah,” He cuts her off. Bad idea.

“Don’t interrupt me,” She shoots at him, “Give Emmy to someone else to watch, come with me.”

Haydn turns away from her and rolls his eyes, whispering something to Embla, who comes to sit next to where Regulus is. He follows Fiona upstairs, Regulus turning his attention back to Mrs. Potter and Andrien. 

“There we go, chère,” She leans over and kisses the top of his head, “All better.”  _ Dear. _

“C’est mieux?” He tearfully asks.  _ It’s better? _

“Mhm,” She nods, “Ça va mieux?”  _ Does it feel better? _

“Yeah,” He looks down at the cut, which is bandaged up. 

James leans down, “What do you say?”

He looks up at Mrs. Potter, “Merci, Auntie.”  _ Thank you _ . 

“You’re welcome, chère,” She turns to Regulus, “Alright, you next dear. Can you move that for me?”

Regulus moves the blood-soaked tissue he is holding to his face, letting Mrs. Potter drip something across the cut. He feels it close up, and she wipes away at the excess before sitting back. 

“There,” She caps the bottle, “Is that better?”

Regulus nods, “Thank you.”

“Of course, ” She smiles, putting away what she was using. She pulls out her wand and enchants a broom to clean that corner of the room. She glances up the stairs, “I have to go make sure Fiona isn’t being too mean to Haydn, it wasn’t his fault.”

“She was  _ mad _ ,” James comments. 

“I’m aware,” She sighs, getting up, “Try to avoid that happening again, alright?”

“We will!” James replies, “Bye Mum! Go save Haydn.” 

She softly laughs before heading back upstairs. The room falls silent, save for the Christmas music playing out of the radio and Andrien still crying in James’ lap. 

Simon breaks it, “Qu'est-il arrivé?”  _ What happened? _

James looks back over his shoulder, looking over to Timothée, who mouths what he said. “Nothing, Simon, just a little mess.”

Simon holds out a book, different from the one Regulus read him before, “Read?”

“I can’t read French bud, have Tim read it,” James says, “Or pick a different one.”

“Tim?” Simon holds the book out, Timothée sighing.

“Ok, Francis is going to listen too.”

James turns back and looks at Regulus, “Isn’t this fun?”

“Exhilarating,” He deadpans, Embla tugging on his sleeve.

“What does that mean?” 

“Like very happy, Emmy,” James chimes in, “Thrilling.”

“Very happy,” She repeats, “I’m exhil-rating.”

James laughs, “Yeah, you definitely are.”

Someone storms back down the stairs, Sirius, Regulus, and James all looking back to see an extremely annoyed Haydn coming back downstairs. He shuts the door behind him, a little loud, before walking over to sit between Regulus and James. 

“Ich schwöre bei Gott, James, she’s ridiculous,” He huffs, “I got a  _ huge _ lecture about how I’m not responsible or attentive enough to watch them, and how it’s apparently my job to watch all,” He counts the kids in the room, “7? 8 of them? Thank God for Aunt Effie, she got me out of it.”  _ I swear to God. _

“That’s what she said she was going to do,” James says, “Not my fault your mom is insane.” 

“She’s still got a lot of that psycho pureblood in her,” He looks over at Regulus and Sirius, “Sorry, that wasn’t directed at either of you.”

“Nope, you’re completely right on that one,” Sirius agrees, “It sounded like our Aunt Druella, right Reg?”

Regulus nods. 

“Yeah, that’s a lecture I’ve heard before in some form,” Sirius says, “It’s the pureblood-ness, you’re right.”

“Good to know I’m on the nose,” Haydn laughs, “Is everything alright down here?”

“Yeah, we’re fine,” James says, “Tim is reading to the other two, Dianna looks content, and,” James looks over his shoulder, “No, wait, they don’t look fine.”

“Sylvia,” Haydn calls, “Come sit over here.”

Sylvia walks over and sits between Regulus and Haydn, burying her face into Haydn’s side. He wraps an arm around her, looking up at James.

“We need to do something before dinner, get out some energy.”

“Hmm,” James thinks, “Let’s get a kid’s opinion. Dianna!” 

“Ja?” She sits up, looking at James.  _ Yeah? _

“What can everyone play together?”

“House!” She excitedly suggests, “We can play house!”

James nods, “That’s actually a really good idea. Haydn?”

“We’ll hate it, but it’s a good idea,” Haydn answers.

“Alright,” James whispers to Andrien, who lights up when he hears it. “Andrien likes the idea.”

“Oi Tim!” Haydn turns over the back of the couch, “Tell the two of them we’re playing house together.”

He groans, “Who decided that?”

“Dianna,” James and Haydn say in tandem. 

Dorita seems to have already heard, because she’s gotten up and is pointing to the couch, “Can we move this?”

“We’ll move it back in a minute,” Haydn says, getting up and looking over to Regulus and Sirius, “You’re getting the full deal tonight.”

Sirius glances down to Regulus, who looks up at him just as confused. “If you don’t mind, what the  _ hell _ are we playing?” Sirius asks. 

“House, you never played house when you were a kid?” Haydn asks, now equally confused.

Regulus and Sirius both shake their heads. James leans over and chimes in, “Reg and Sirius had a very boring childhood.”

“Move the couch!” Dorita whines.

“One-”

“Now now now!” Embla, who at some point got up and is standing by Dorita, chants excitedly.

Haydn sighs, “I’ll explain it later, let’s move this couch before one of them starts screaming.”

Regulus gets up, Sirius coming around to the other side. James gets up too, and the four of them manage to push the couch back so you can still get in and out of the room, but it’s closer to the door. Haydn moves the coffee table, and all the kids start to gather on the ground.

Sirius leans over to Regulus, “What the hell is going on?”

“If only I knew.”


	56. House

Regulus sits himself between Sirius, who has James hanging on him behind him, and Haydn, trying to follow the conversation between the younger kids. 

Haydn moves so he can look at Sirius and Regulus, “So you both really don’t know what we’re doing?”

“Not a clue,” Sirius answers.

“So, ‘house’,” Haydn puts air quotes around the word, “Is when everyone gets a role and we all pretend we live together. Some of them are babies, some are pets, but we’re all going to be adults. They’ll just tell us.”

“Pause, some are  _ what _ ?” 

“Pets,” Haydn repeats, “Andrien is normally an owl, and Dorita has been a cat every time we get forced to play. She also licks people sometimes, be careful of that.”

“Oh my God,” James leans down, “Sirius, you can be the grandmother, we can be married.”

“You’re the grandfather?” Sirius questions, James nodding. “I see nothing wrong with that.”

“You’ll catch on as it goes, they normally tell you what they want you to do,” Haydn explains, “Or they’ll be like ‘Pause, you have to yatta yatta’.”

“Pause gets me every time,” James says, “I have to laugh because it’s  _ so _ funny.”

“Oh,” Haydn starts, “And sometimes their roles just change, especially Francis, he never picks anything.”

“Haydn, Haydn,” Embla pulls at his sleeve, “You’re the mom.”

“Ok Emmy,” He points beside him, “Who is Regulus?” 

“Uhh,” She looks back, “Dor, who is he?”

“Hm, c'est le papa,” She decides.  _ He is the dad. _

“Yeah! C'est le papa!” She turns back to Haydn, “Ok?”

“Regulus, is that ok with you?” He looks at Regulus, whispering, “You don’t have much of a choice.”

Regulus shrugs, he has no idea either way.

“Sirius is the grandma,” James chimes in, “We’re married.”

“No, he’s a boy!” Embla crosses her arms. 

“But Haydn is a boy, and he’s the mom,” James points out, seemingly being all it takes for her to accept it.

“Ok, that’s fine,” She goes back to Alanna and Sylvia, going to talk to them.

“Wow Reg, they made you the dad,” James laughs, “High honor, they won’t even let Tim be the dad.”

“That’s good though, I’ll make sure they don’t attack you,” Haydn assures him, “Whatever they say, just play along. Easy as that.”

Regulus nods skeptically because that does not sound easy.

“Ok ok!” Dorita stops everyone, “Are we ready?”

“Who is who?” Haydn asks, “Tell us, then we can start.”

“I’m the cat, Alanna and Sylvia are sisters, Emmy, Dianna, and Simon are babies, Andrien is our owl.” 

“What about Tim and Francis?” James questions 

“Oh, Tim is our uncle but he’s mean to us,” She explains, “So we don’t like him.”

“Sounds about right to me,” Timothée comments,

“And I’m Francis!” Francis chimes in, “I’m me.”

Haydn nods, “You’re you bud, that’s right.”

“Play now!” Andrien cheers, “Maintenant!” 

“We start,” Embla says, “Now.”

“Hoooo!” Andrien calls, proceeding to do it several more times. 

“No, wait pause,” Dianna stops them, pointing at Regulus, “You work.”

He stares at her a moment, “What?”

“You have to work,” She repeats, not providing any additional detail. 

He looks over at Haydn for instruction. “When they tell you it’s time for work, you can just go upstairs for a couple of minutes,” He explains, “They used to make  _ me _ work, and trust me, work is the best place to be.”

Regulus nods. That seems easy enough.

“Ok play,” Dianna smiles, everyone breaking off again. James drags Sirius over to the couch, Sirius jumping to lay on top of James. Good for them, they’re making the most of it.

Sylvia walks up to him and holds out a bag, which seems to be empty, “You have to work now.”

“Ok,” He slowly nods, taking the bag and getting up. Haydn gives him a thumbs-up, and Regulus walks back towards the door.

“Are you going to work?” James asks, and Regulus nods. “That’s so fun, see you in two minutes Reg!”

“Bye?” Regulus half questions, going up the stairs into the much noisier group of adults in both the kitchen and living room. Léo notices him first.

“Effie!” He calls, Mrs. Potter turning back from what she’s doing. He points at Regulus and Mrs. Potter walks over to him. 

“Do you need something, dear?” She asks, and he shakes his head. “Did the kids kick you out?”

“We’re playing something,” He explains, “I’m ‘at work’.”

“Ahh,” She laughs, “Well, while you’re at work, mind taste-testing something for me?” 

“Alright,” He answers, watching as she goes back into the kitchen to grab something. She comes back with a small spoon of something. 

“Here, try this for me,” She hands him the spoon. He eats whatever it is, which tastes both oddly familiar and really good. “Does it have too much garlic, do you think?”

He shakes his head and hands the spoon back, “It’s really good.”

“Thank you, dear,” She smiles, looking behind him, “Someone has come to get you.”

He turns back and sees Andrien on the landing, holding out a piece of paper. 

“Have fun, Regulus,” She laughs, “I’ll probably see you in a few minutes.”

He nods and meets Andrien on the landing, taking the paper and reading in scratchy, child’s handwriting ‘Work is over’. Andrien makes Regulus pick him up, and Regulus takes both of them back downstairs. James and Sirius haven’t moved, although Haydn has, and is carrying around Embla on his back.

“Welcome back Regulus,” Haydn greets, “Did Aunt Effie feed you?”

Regulus nods.

“She normally does.”

“Aw, wait, you got food?” James whines, “I want a job! Dianna, can I have a job?”

“No, you’re old,” She tells him, “You’re going to die.”

“Woah!” James laughs, “Why am I dying? I’m a perfectly healthy old man.”

“I’m a baby, I can’t talk,” She says, going back to laying on her blankets on the ground.

“What- you just-” James shakes his head, “Whatever, I’ll just go to work with Reg. Come sit Reg,” James points at his and Sirius’ feet. Regulus walks around the couch and sits, Andrien looking up at him.

“Hoo!” He says, quite aggressively.

Regulus stares at him, trying to figure out  _ what _ that means. He glances up to Haydn, who seems to be busy, weaving his way around Dorita on the ground. 

“Hoooo!” He yells louder, Regulus shaking his head in confusion. He looks back at James and Sirius, where he’s pretty sure Sirius is falling asleep. James gives him just as much of a confused look. 

Andrien gets up to go annoy Haydn, but is shortly replaced by Francis, who smiles up a Regulus, “Hi!” 

“Hi,” Regulus answers.

“Uh, um,” Francis struggles for what to say, “Quel est votre name?”  _ What is your? _

“Quel est votre  _ nom _ ,” He corrects, “And Regulus.”

“Regulus,” He repeats before getting up to annoy James. Regulus has realized that he should stop being surprised at how these interactions go. Regulus’ eyes catch on Dorita and Sylvia, where Sylvia keeps pulling her arm away from Dorita, who seems to be hissing at her. Regulus decides  _ maybe _ he should break that up.

“Sylvia,” He calls, causing her to turn around. He beckons her over, and she takes a seat next to him. Of course, with her comes Dorita. Dorita hisses again, scratching at Sylvia’s legs. 

“Stop it,” Sylvia whines, “Stop, Dorita!”

Dorita doesn’t stop, continuing to annoy Sylvia.

“No more, Dorita,” He scolds, her looking up at him confused, “Don’t do that.”

She crosses her arms, looking at him dejectedly for a moment before going to annoy Alanna, who is playing with Simon. Regulus looks over to Sylvia, who is sniffling to herself.

“I don’t like this game,” She mutters, moving to pull Regulus’ arm around her so she can bury her face into his side like she did to Haydn. He does not know how to fix this, although he doesn’t get time to think about it before Embla crawls up onto the couch beside Syliva. 

She pulls on her sleeve, “Is Sylvia ok?”

Sylvia looks over to Embla but doesn’t say anything. Embla gets up on her knees and moves Sylvia’s face into a smile.

“No, be happy!” She protests, “We’re playing!” 

“No, I don’t like this game,” Sylvia repeats to her, Embla grabbing her hand.

“We’re having fun, come on,” Embla gets down and drags Sylvia away to her ‘bed’ on the ground, cooing at her until she laughs. 

“Regulus,” Haydn calls, “Can you come here for a second?”

Regulus gets up and walks over, Haydn walking up next to him and pointing to Embla and Sylvia, who seem to be playing together fine.

“What happened with Sylvia?” He whispers.

“Dorita was annoying her,” Regulus says, “She said she didn’t like playing, but then Emmy came over and helped.”

“Ok good, I just wanted to make sure nothing bad was happening,” Haydn says, “Thank-”

“Mom!” Dianna whines, holding her arms up. Haydn sighs.

“No, Dianna, I was just holding you,” He shakes his head, “You’re big-”

“I’m a baby!” She argues, “Up!”

“No,” Haydn maintains, causing Dianna to fake cry on the ground. “Ach du lieber Gott.” 

“You, you,” Francis runs up to him, “Work!” 

“I’m going to work?” Regulus asks, and Francis nods. “Alright.”

“Is Reg going to work?” James yells across the room, “Can I go to work?”

“No, you can’t!” Dianna yells at him, but James gets up anyway.

“I have autonomy, I’m getting a job,” James says, “Come on Reg.”

“No no no!” Dianna yells, Embla sitting up to figure out what’s going on. Regulus just follows James up the stairs, James laughing.

“They’re going to kill me,” He comments, “But I want a job! No reason an old man can’t work.”

Dianna comes up the stairs behind him, crossing her arms on the landing and looking up at them, “You can’t James!” 

“Yeah, I can-”

“You’re dead,” She says, “You died.”

James stares at her a second, “I what?”

“Died,” Dianna repeats, “You died at work.”

“Oh, uhh,” James glances up to Regulus, confused, “Alright, can I be a ghost?”

“Mhm,” She nods, “I’ll go tell. Guys!” She runs back downstairs.

“Guess I died,” James shrugs, looking over as Mrs. Potter walks up to them, “Hi Mum.”

“Are you also at work?” She asks.

James nods, “Yeah, but I just died so I won’t come back to work.”

“You died?” She questions, and he nods again. “Well alright, can dead people taste test?”

“Oh absolutely!” James excitedly answers, Mrs. Potter laughing before going back into the kitchen. She comes out with two spoons, handing one to each of them. They eat what’s off of them, which is, once again, really good. They hand both the spoons back.

“Mmm,” James nods, “That’s good, what is that?”

“Gratin Dauphinois, mine and Esmé’s,” She answers.

“Of course it’s good, it’s-”

“Hooooo!” Andrien yells from the landing, holding the same piece of paper that says ‘Work is over’. 

“What does that say?” James points, looking up at Regulus.

“Work is over,” Regulus tells him, and James nods.

He looks up at his mother, “Well, it was fun while it lasted, but bye Mum!”

“Bye boys,” She laughs, “Have fun.”

James and Regulus come back down the stairs, Andrien running ahead of them. When they come back downstairs, both of them immediately spot Sirius talking to a group of the kids sitting around him. They come around the front, seeing Francis sitting in his lap.

“-And he was always so loud,” He says, “He once woke up a whole room of sleeping trolls!”

They gasp. “Wow,” Francis marvels, “So loud!”

“What are you talking about?” James asks, but Sirius doesn’t even look over.

“Sometimes I can still hear him talking,” Sirius shakes his head, “Everpresent, always chatting right in my ear.”

James leans over to Regulus, “Is he talking about me?”

“I think he is,” Regulus whispers back.

The door opens on the landing and everyone stops, listening for who it is. The immediate yelling in French and the cheers indicate it’s Rosetta and Veva. 

“Keep going keep going!” Francis taps Sirius, and Sirius continues to tell stories about James in the most dramatic way possible. James drags Regulus over to the other side of the couch, both of them sitting down.

“So are you having f-”

“No no!” Dianna runs over, “He’s a ghost.”

“I can talk to ghosts,” Regulus answers, and she stares at him confused.

“Prove it,” Dianna crosses her arms. 

James whispers to him, “Say that I said that Dianna is my favorite cousin.”

“He said you’re his favorite cousin,” Regulus tells her, and she gasps.

“You can!” She smiles, “Ok!” 

Dianna goes back over to Sirius, listening to him continue to slip in and out of an old lady voice. 

“Sirius is really living in that role,” James laughs, “I think me dying was the best thing to happen.”

“Interesting take,” Regulus comments, turning around as people come downstairs.

“Rosetta!” Dorita cheers, catching everyone’s attention. Andrien runs over to hang on her leg.

“Woah woah,” Rosetetta laughs, “Let us get in the room first.”

Rosetta leans down and picks up Andrien, setting him on her shoulders. “Careful,” Veva warns, holding a hand up in case he falls.

“I’ve held kids before, it’s fine,” Rosetta answers, walking over to sit on the couch, “What’re you guys doing?”

“We’re playing house!” Dianna answers, “James died!”

“James  _ died _ ?” Rosetta looks over at James, “You’re dead?”

“Yeah, I’m the grandpa but I’m dead so, I guess I’m not anymore,” James laughs, “Sirius is my wife.”

“I’m his wife,” Sirius says, “I’m carrying his legacy.”

Rosetta nods, “So that’s fun.”

“Down down,” Andrien taps her head, and Rosetta lets him down, he holds out his arm, “Look.”

“Aww,” She looks at his bandaged arm, “What happened copain?”  _ Buddy _ .

“I fell,” He tells her, “With verre.”  _ Glass _ .

“You got cut with glass?” She asks, “From what?”

“Uhh, uhh,” Andrien looks over to Haydn, who is cleaning something up across the room. 

“A vase,” Haydn tells Rosetta, “Emmy knocked him into the table by accident, but she also almost took Regulus’ eye out with a piece of glass she was swinging around.” 

“She what?” Rosetta shakes her head, “You know what? I’m not surprised. I hope you’re alright though, Regulus.”

He nods. 

“Will you play?” Embla asks, “Play House with us!” 

“No, we’ll just watch,” Rosetta says, “We’re also ghosts like James.”

“So Rrrr-” Embla looks at Regulus a moment, “Regulus can talk to you!” 

“Yeah, he can,” She nods, waving at Regulus, who waves back. 

“What time is it?” Haydn asks, “I’m hungry.” 

“It’s like 5:30?” Rosetta guesses, “Dinner is almost done.” 

Haydn nods, “So they’ll call us up soon? Because they have to sit all the kids down.”

“Yeah, they were talking about it when we were up there,” She answers, looking over to the kids, “Don’t let me interpret your game, guys, keep going.”

“Tell another story!” Embla pulls at Sirius’ pant leg.

He jumps back into another story, catching almost everyone’s attention, save for Simon who walks over to Rosetta. 

“Hey,” She smiles, “Who are you in the game?”

“I’m a lawyer!” He cheers.

Haydn looks over, “I thought you were a baby, Simon?” 

“Not not,” He shakes his head, “Baby made me mad, I’m a lawyer.”

Haydn shakes his head and goes back to what he’s doing, “Whatever you say, bud.”

“Yeah?” He looks back at Rosetta, “I can lawyer you!” 

“You can what?” She laughs, “What does that mean?”

“I can yell at people!” He excitedly answers, “Like this.” He walks over to James and screams, “Vous vous trompez!”  _ You are wrong! _

James stares at him before yelling back, “What does that mean?!”

“Trompez!” He yells again.  _ Wrong _ .

“He’s telling you you’re wrong,” Rosetta tells him. James doesn’t get to respond before someone yells down the stairs.

“Can we have Andrien for a second?” Mrs. Potter yells down the stairs, Andrien jumping at the opportunity and running up the stairs. 

“Why did she need him?” Rosetta asks, and James shrugs, shaking his head. He comes back a second later with a piece of paper, running over to hand it to Haydn. 

Haydn takes it, confused until he reads what’s on it, “Oh, they used Andrien as an owl.”

“What does it say?” James asks.

“Dinner is ready!” 


	57. He Did It!

Regulus comes up the stairs at the back of the group, seeing a new table put up in the living room, a couple of feet from the normal dining table. The kids are already grabbing their seats, Léo, Percy, and Mr. Potter are setting everyone up, making sure there are enough seats on one side for the older kids. They sit in the same orientation as last time, the closer Regulus gets to the table the sicker he feels. 

He takes his seat between James, at the head of the table, and Sirius. Across from him is Haydn, Sylvia taking her seat next to him. The adults set down a plate of food for each of them, including the older kids. The table is just as loud as he remembers, which is really not doing his nerves any good.

The adults go off to their own table, everyone starting to eat what’s in front of them. Well, everyone  _ but _ Regulus, who just stares at his plate, fork in hand. He pushes it around a little, taking 3 bites before he feels like he’s going to be sick if he eats anymore. Sirius nudges him after about 20 minutes of Regulus just sitting there, but he doesn’t need to hear anything to know what Sirius is thinking.

“No,” Regulus looks up at him, “Don’t.”

“You haven’t eaten since yesterday  _ again _ ,” Sirius says, “Remember what happened when you did that last time?”

“That’s different,” Regulus answers, saving the details.

“No, it’s not,” Sirius argues, pointing at a portion of food on Regulus’ plate, “Eat that.”

Regulus looks over at him confused as to what that means.

“Start with that, eat that first.”

“That’s not how this works,” Regulus counters. It isn’t because it’s too much food, it’s because Regulus  _ isn’t hungry _ .

“Well make it how it works,” Sirius argues.

He just rolls his eyes and goes back to pushing his food around, not being able to actually put any of it in his mouth. 

James reaches for his water but misses and knocks it over in Regulus’ direction. “Shoot!” He picks it back up, but the water is already everywhere, “Ffff- I’m sorry Reg, damnit.”

“What happened over there?” Rosetta, at the end of the adults’ table, leans over to look. 

“James spilled the water,” Dorita says, pointing at James.

“James,” Mrs. Potter gets up and walks over, “Oh good, you knocked it on Regulus as well.”

“It was an accident,” James says, “I missed reaching for it, I’m sorry.”

“It’s alright, it’s just water,” She puts a hand on Regulus’ shoulder, “Come, let’s get you dried off. Can you clean the table, James?”

“I got it,” James gets up, heading into the kitchen. Regulus gets up from the table, admittedly dripping water, and follows Mrs. Potter off down the hall. She goes into the bathroom and grabs a towel, handing it to him. He tries to dry the water off his pants, but he’s still soaking wet. 

“Goodness, what am I going to do with James,” She comments, “I can’t bring him anywhere.”

Regulus forces a small laugh. It isn’t James’ fault, but that shot his already high anxiety through the roof. 

Mrs. Potter pauses a moment, “Are you feeling alright dear?”

Regulus looks up at her and shrugs, handing back the towel. 

She looks at him a moment, “That cut under your eye isn’t looking any better, I’ll have to treat it when we get home. We have something that I think works better on you, we’ll try that.”

Regulus nods, although he would prefer going right up into his room when they get him he knows that treating the cut is a little time-sensitive. 

“Let’s see how bad of a cleaning job James did,” She says, Regulus turning around to walk back into the other room. James smiles and gives them two thumbs up.

“It’s dry!” He says, “Yay!”

“It would be yay if you didn’t do it in the first place,” Mrs. Potter comments as Regulus takes his seat again, “Be  _ careful _ next time, alright?”

“I will Mum,” He answers, Mrs. Potter rubbing Regulus’ shoulder before walking back to the other table. James sits back down, “Sorry again, Reg, I didn’t mean to do that.”

“It’s fine,” Regulus quietly answers, clasping his hands in his lap.

James looks at him skeptically for a second, “Are you ok?”

Regulus nods, but Sirius feels the need to answer for him.

“No, he’s not,” Sirius shoots Regulus a look, “He’s lying to you.”

“Sirius,” Regulus warns, not looking over at him.

“Reg,” Sirius shoots back. 

“James!” James chimes in, causing both of them to stifle a laugh, but fall silent after that. Someone throws something across the table, ending up in James’ hair. 

“Who threw that?” He asks, picking a piece of bread out of his hair. The triplets laugh, but James doesn’t find it as amusing, “No throwing food, you know that.”

“Simon did it,” Francis accuses, but Simon shakes his head vehemently. 

“No,” He says, “Francis did!”

“No no!” Francis denies, “Simon!”

“Francis!” 

“Simon!”

“Stop it,” Haydn stops them, “No more arguing, just don’t do it again.”

“Ok,” Francis pouts, going back to his plate. Haydn and James pick back up a conversation, Regulus keeping one eye on the triplets. They look like they’re plotting, and a second later another piece of bread flies across the table, missing James this time. 

“What did we say?” Haydn jumps to discipline before James can, “No more throwing things, stop it.”

“No that was Andrien,” Francis accuses, Andrien looking very dejected.

“It’s not me,” He defends himself, crossing his arms. 

“Who threw it?” Haydn firmly asks. 

“Andrien,” Francis repeats, “It was him.”

“No no no, it’s not me,” He shakes his head, tears welling up in his eyes, “Not me.”

“I believe you bud,” Haydn says, although it doesn’t sink in, “Don’t cry, Andrien, I believe you.”

“No you don’t,” He sniffles, “You don’t believe.”

“Yes, I do,” Haydn sighs, “Come here bud.”

Andrien gets down and climbs up onto Haydn’s lap, burying his head into Haydn’s chest. 

Haydn rubs his back, looking at James, “I think he’s a little tired.”

“Just a little,” James agrees, “It’s not even that late.”

“House is apparently tiring,” Haydn stifles a laugh, falling into a conversation with James that Regulus doesn’t care to tune in on. 

Almost another 10 minutes go by until Embla decides she’s done with dinner, getting up and going downstairs. 

“Did Emmy just leave?” Haydn asks, not getting his answer before Dianna asks something. 

“Can I leave?” 

“Yeah, I guess,” Haydn answers, “If you’re done you can go.”

Dianna, Dorita, Sylvia, Simon, and Francis all get up from the table, all following after Embla. Timothée and Alanna walk off down the hall, probably into his room. Rosetta and Veva take up the opportunity to move over to their table, Rosetta sitting next to Sirius and Veva sitting next to Haydn.

“Favorite cousins have arrived,” Rosetta says, “How’s it going?”

“Well, other than this,” Haydn points to Andrien, who is asleep against him, “It’s going pretty good.”

“Well, if that’s the worst thing I think you’re doing well,” She nods, looking over to Regulus and Sirius, “You both go to Hogwarts with James, right?”

“Mhm,” Sirius nods, “We do.”

“No offense, but Hogwarts is stupid,” She says, “Beauxbatons is far superior.”

“Hogwarts isn’t  _ that _ bad,” James argues, “As good as Beauxbatons? Maybe not, but we’re not horrible.”

“Your education might be better, but your student body is horrible,” Rosetta points out, “You all would kill each other if given the chance.”

James hesitates, “I don’t think we would.”

Regulus raises an eyebrow at James because Regulus knows that they definitely would.

“Ok, Reg doesn’t agree with me,” James laughs, “But I don’t think we’re that bad.”

“Because you’re a whats-it-called,” Haydn says, “You’re the liked one, aren’t you?”

“Gryffindors are kind of liked,” Sirius shrugs, “I feel like I have a slightly skewed view though.”

“Why’s that?” Rosetta asks. 

“My family is all Slytherins, so being a Gryffindor did  _ not _ go well for me,” Sirius points back at Regulus, “Reg is a Slytherin.”

“We don’t like a lot of Slytherins, but we like Reg,” James says, “He’s a cool Slytherin.”

“Good to know he gets a pass,” Rosetta laughs, “Do you guys go back on the 3rd?”

James nods, “Mhm, we do.”

“Gross,” Haydn comments, “We get an extra week.”

“Eh, our break is barely half over,” James shrugs, “I don’t have to think about it yet.”

Rosetta nods, “Veva and I plan on traveling somewhere new after you guys all go back, but we haven’t decided where yet.”

“You’re always traveling,” Haydn says, “Of course you’re going somewhere new.”

“It’s our brand,” Rosetta looks at Veva, “Right, babe?”

“Whatever you say,” Veva laughs, “You’re making the kids uncomfortable.”

“Fff- Forget them,” She stops herself, looking over as Mrs. Potter walks over, “Hi Aunt Euphemia.”

“Hello Rosetta,” She says, grabbing the younger kids’ plates off the table, “You’re not annoying the boys, are you?”

“Never,” She answers, “We’re just talking about school, I’m learning about how none of your kids go to Beauxbatons.”

“James can’t speak French, that wouldn’t have gone well,” She comments, handing off the plates to Fiona before picking up the rest. 

“Still can’t believe you don’t speak French, James,” Rosetta shakes her head, “How do you understand  _ any _ of the kids?”

“I understand  _ some _ French,” He argues, “But I just ask Haydn, or Tim, or Sirius, or Reg. I have lots of people who  _ do _ speak French.”

Mrs. Potter comes around behind Haydn to grab his empty plate, but her eyes catch on Regulus a moment too long. She comes around behind him, handing off what’s in her hand.

“Regulus, can you look at me for a second?” She says, Regulus looking back at her crouching behind him. She reaches out for his face and he flinches. “Sorry dear, I just don’t like the way that cut looks.”

“Is it bad?” James asks, Regulus looking over at him. James visibly cringes, “Ooo, that’s not fun. You don’t feel that?”

Regulus shrugs and shakes his head, he’s not really paying attention to his face at the moment.

Mrs. Potter stands back up, Regulus looking back at her. “There’s not much I can do until we get home, I’ll just treat it once we do.”

Regulus nods and she walks off. He goes to reach up and touch it, confused about how it can be so bad, but Sirius grabs his arm. 

“Don’t touch it,” He stops him, “It’ll make it worse, you know that.”

Regulus pulls his arm away but doesn’t try again. 

“Are the kids downstairs with no supervision?” Rosetta asks, “Because Tim and Alanna aren’t down there.”

“Uh, yeah, I think they are,” James shrugs, “I hope they don’t break anything, I don’t want to go down there.”

“I’m not saying anything,” Rosetta answers, “I’ll get sent down there too, so I’ll keep my mouth shut.”

James pauses a second, clearly thinking of something before looking at Regulus. “Did you see my coat in the piano room before we left, Reg?”

Regulus looks at him confused, shaking his head slowly.

“Where did that come from?” Haydn questions.

“Well, I was cold, so I thought about my coat, and then I remembered I didn’t bring it because I couldn’t find it, but then I remember going into the piano room this morning with it to say hi to Reg so I thought I left it in there,” James explains, “But apparently I didn’t.”

“It’s on the couch,” Regulus tells him, and James nods in realization.

“Yep, yeah it is,” He says, “Your memory is insane, Reg.”

“That was this morning, James,” Rosetta comments.

“Ok, maybe that was a bad example, but Reg does have a really good memory,” James argues, “He probably knows, like, what I was wearing when we played truth or dare like three months ago. Wait, do you?”

Regulus nods, “Your Quidditch sweater.”

“See? Insane,” James points, “Anyway, what else is there?”

“Boys,” Mrs. Potter calls, causing all three of them to turn around, “Say goodbye to everyone, we’re going to get going.”

“Aww, so early?” James whines.

“Yes, James,” Mrs. Potter answers, “We’ve been here for a while.”

“I think we should be here for longer,” James argues.

“And I’m telling you we’re going home,” Mrs. Potter maintains, “Come on.”

“Alright alright,” James gets up, Sirius and Regulus following. James starts to bid his goodbyes to everyone at the table, Regulus giving halfhearted waves until he can float his way over to the stairs, standing next to Mrs. Potter.

“Was today better than last time?” She asks, and he nods. “Good, hopefully, we keep on that trend. Are you sure you don’t feel that cut?”

He nods, “I don’t really.”

“Hm,” She puzzles, “It’s not a bad thing, it’s just irritated, I would think you would feel it.”

Regulus shrugs. It stings, but it’s not bad, and he hasn’t really paid any mind to it. Therefore, he’s saying it doesn’t hurt.

Sirius walks up beside him, “You know, Reg if that scars, it’ll kind of match the one on the other side.”

Regulus shakes his head “Not at all.”

“A little bit,” Sirius argues, “I mean, the other one was a  _ little _ worse, but that’s alright.”

“A little?” Regulus challenges, “My eye was red for a week and a half.”

“Hold on, what are you two talking about?” Mrs. Potter stops them.

“When we were younger- well, I’ll save the details, but Reg got that scar through his left eye and his eye was all red for a while,” Sirius explains.

“As in you popped a blood vessel? Like blood red?” She asks, and Sirius nods. “How old were you, dear?” 

Regulus shrugs, “Maybe 6.”

“Goodness gracious,” She shakes her head, “That’s not good, well, it’s not bad, but I’m assuming that what popped that blood vessel was not a sneeze.”

Sirius shakes his head, “It was a sharp object and probably dirty.”

“Wonderful,” She deadpans, “No more stories before I worry.”

James comes out of the kitchen, Mr. Potter in tow, smiling up at his mother, “Hi!” 

“Hello, James,” She answers, “Did you say goodbye to Tim and Alanna?”

“Oh wait,” James runs down the hall, peeks in their room, says something, and comes back. “Yes, I have.”

“Let’s tell the little ones we’re leaving,” Mrs. Potter sighs, “This isn’t going to go well.”

“Nope,” James says, following after his mother as she goes down the stairs. Regulus and Sirius follow him, Mr. Potter trailing behind. Downstairs is not only loud but in absolute chaos. And since it’s kids, they’re going to want hugs. Regulus gears up for it as Mrs. Potter leans over the couch to tell them.

“We’re going home, come and say goodbye.”


	58. Merry Christmas!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> no, this isn't a christmas chapter, i didn't feel like writing one alright

“Regulus,” Mrs. Potter says as they walk in the door, “Grab a seat at the table for a moment, dear, I’ll be right down.”

Regulus nods and pulls a chair out from the dinner table, taking a seat. James, everso interested, takes a seat across from him, “Hi Reg!”

Regulus waves at him.

“So how was your afternoon?”

“Alright,” He answers.

“Are you excited about tomorrow?” James asks, Regulus looking at him in confusion. “It’s Christmas! That’s so exciting.”

Regulus shrugs, it’s never been something particularly exciting for him.

“I think you should be excited,” James says, “Even just for the holiday spirit! It’s fun!”

“I’m not very spirited,” Regulus replies, glancing over as Mrs. Potter comes down the stairs.

“I think you’re an adequate level of spirited,” James counters, looking over as Mrs. Potter walks up to him, “Hi Mum!”

“Hello, James,” She flatly answers, “Do you mind?”

“Hm? Oh,” He gets up, “Whoops.”

“Go upstairs with Sirius,” She says, pointing up the stairs, “And take your coat with you.”

James runs into the living room, taking the coat Mr. Potter is holding back to him before running up the stairs into his room. Mrs. Potter sits where he was, placing the box on that table. 

“So dear, did the kids give you less of a hard time today?” She asks, dabbing something on the cut, “I really just mean Tim, since I know he wasn’t the nicest last time.”

Regulus stops himself from just nodding, “Mhm.”

“Good, I spoke to Fiona about it last time,” She tells him, “She wasn’t happy in the slightest, so I’m sure he got a talking too.” She sits back and sighs, “I can’t seem to get that looking any better.”

“It’s fine,” He says. 

“I know you think it’s fine, but it’s just making me nervous,” She grabs something else, “I’ll leave it alone after this, just let me put this on it.”

He nods, and she dabs something over the cut.

“Ok, I won’t touch it,” She puts the things she took out away, “You’re free to go, dear.”

“Thank you,” He replies, going upstairs to hide back in his room. Although this time wasn’t as torturous as last time, he certainly didn’t really  _ enjoy _ it. 

He goes over to his mirror and looks at this cut everyone seems to be concerned about. It’s a little red, yes, although it’s probably not as red as it was before considering Mrs. Potter layered stuff on it. But it doesn’t look like the worst thing he’s had, he doesn’t understand the issue.

He shrugs it off, heading back over to his bed and grabbing the book he’s been reading off of the nightstand. He jumps onto his bed and pulls his covers over his legs, considering it’s cold and cracks open his book to where he left off. He can already hear James bouncing off the wall.

Good to know he’s excited.

***

James has been up the wall all morning. He woke Regulus up at 9 in the morning with more energy than ever. Opening gifts was nice, where there was about an even number for each of them. New piano pieces, some clothes, which he admittedly needed, and a couple of other small things he’s mentioned needing once or twice. It’s weird having someone pay so much attention.

He’s picking through one of these new pieces when the piano room door opens, Regulus turning around to see James holding out a letter from the doorway.

“This came for you,” He says, walking in to hand it to Regulus, “It doesn’t look like Narcissa or Andromeda, though.”

Regulus takes it from him, immediately recognizing whose handwriting that is. It isn’t too hard, considering only Cynthia would write his name in beautiful calligraphy on a letter. But  _ why _ is she writing him?

“You look like you know who that is,” James says, “Who is it?”

“No one,” He brushes James off, “Thank you, James.”

“No wait, I want to know who it is,” James presses, “Please”

“Maybe later,” Regulus says, getting up from the piano bench. 

James sighs, “Fine, I’ll take that.”

“Good,” Regulus answers, causing James to laugh before going back out into the living room, where he and Sirius seem to be knee-deep in planning something. 

“Look and look off,” Sirius jokingly threatens, Regulus raising an eyebrow before going upstairs. He goes into his room and grabs a seat on his bed, carefully opening the letter stamped with the Greengrass stamp. 

_ Hi Reggie! _

_ Hi! I hope your break has been going well. You can totally say no because it is a little sketchy, but my parents are supposed to be away on Monday and I think I can buy my siblings off to let me get out of the house for a few hours. If it’s alright with everyone there, would you mind if I paid a small visit? I miss you loads so I want to take the opportunity if it’s there, you know? _

_ Don’t seal the letter with anything that will remotely tell my parents it’s you. They’ll never leave me alone, just be careful (Although, I know you understand that). Maybe stamp it with a Black seal to really put it all together. _

_ Don’t take 8 years to respond either, I need adequate time to bargain. _

_ (Hopefully) See you soon! _

_ ~ Cynthia  _

Regulus drops the letter on the bed and immediately gets up to look for Mrs. Potter. If he could see Cynthia  _ and _ be home, he’s pretty sure he’s going to take that offer. Although, he doesn’t see her, so it’s a possibility she went out with Mr. Potter. 

“Are you looking for Mum?” James asks, and Regulus nods. “She’s downstairs I think, I don’t know what she’s doing but I know she’s down there.”

Regulus nods again, “Thank you.”

“When you come back up will you tell me who sent you that letter?” James asks.

“Maybe,” Regulus answers before going downstairs. Mrs. Potter is cleaning up something in the far corner of the room, turning around when he reaches the bottom of the stairs. 

“Hello, dear,” She smiles, “Do you need something?”

He pauses a second, looking for a good way to word this that will best cushion a no. “Cynthia wrote me.”

“That’s wonderful,” She says, “What’d she say?”

“She asked if she could come over Monday,” Regulus hesitates, “Her parents don’t know.”

Mrs. Potter nods, “It’s a different circumstance, I understand it’s not out of malice towards her parents. But Ted and Dora are coming over Monday, Fleamont needs to sort something out with him. It’s just if you’re fine with that, I certainly don’t mind, but Dora is likely to hang on you.”

“I don’t mind, if that’s alright with you,” He says, “I understand if not, though, that a lot.”

“Nonsense, tell her it’s fine,” Mrs. Potter assures him, “I would love to meet her.”

He smiles, “Thank you.”

“Of course,” She replies, Regulus heading back upstairs and into his room before James can notice him. He pulls out parchment and a quill, scribbling a response back in a little bit sloppier handwriting than normal. He digs in his nightstand drawer and pulls out his Black family stamp, something he hasn’t used in a while. Even to Narcissa, he uses a blank stamp.

He heads downstairs and hands the letter to their owl, opening the kitchen window so she can fly out. He shuts the window and turns back to see James sitting up on the couch, looking over at him attentively.

“So,” James says, “Who is it?” 

Sirius looks over at him confused, but the kind of confused that tells Regulus he knows who he thinks it is. Regulus nods, Sirius smiling at him. 

“Good for you,” He says, going back to what he was doing. 

“Why am  _ I _ not included when you two talk like that?” James whines, “I want to be in on it!” 

“You wouldn’t understand it,” Sirius argues, “I’ve  _ tried _ to tell you things across the room, you’re just a tad oblivious.” 

“When have you done that?”

“See,” Sirius laughs, “You have no idea what’s going on.”

“No wait, I can do it now that I’ve watched it,” James says, “Try me.”

“That’s not how this works,” Sirius shakes his head, “It’s not telepathic.”

“It kind of is,” James holds his two fingers close together, “Just a little.”

“Not at all,” Sirius counters, “I can’t just stare at Reg and he’ll get what I mean,  _ and _ we’ve been doing it our whole life.”

“This is so unfair,” James pouts, “Will I ever find out who that was?”

Regulus nods, “Monday.”

“Monday, cool,” James nods, “Ok, bye Reg!” 

“Bye,” Regulus waves, heading back upstairs. He can’t help but smile, because now he has something else to look forward to on Monday. It’ll be interesting to balance Cynthia and Nymphadora, but it shouldn’t be a problem. 

He’s just excited he has things to do.

***

Regulus comes down the stairs the same time Mr. Potter opens the front door, greeting Ted as he walks in the door. Nymphadora is trying to squirm out of his arms until he finally sets her down. She runs at Regulus and hugs his legs.

“Hi, Dora,” He greets, and she looks up at him, smiling.

“Hi!” She chirps, “Where are Sirius and James?” 

“They’re in here,” He grabs her hand, leading her into the piano room, where Sirius is painting on the floor, his Gryffindor tie tied around his head in an effort to keep his hair back, and James is sitting up against the wall talking to him. 

“Hi!” She runs over and holds her hands over Sirius’ eyes, “Guess who!”

“Hmmm,” He puzzles, “Maybe… James?” 

“No,” She giggles, “Again.”

“Maybe… Reg?”

“No,” She giggles again, taking her hands away, “It’s me!” 

Sirius leans bank so he can hang his head back and see her, “Oh! It’s Dora!”

“Yeah!” She leans over his shoulder, “What’re you doing?” 

“Painting,” He answers, “See?”

“It’s pretty,” She marvels, going to touch it.

“No, you can’t touch it,” Sirius lightly pushes her hand away, “It’s still wet.”

“Oh,” She sits back, “Why?”

“I’m still painting it,” He says, slightly confused. 

She turns around and climbs up onto the piano bench, where Regulus is sitting. She looks over at him, “What’re you doing?”

“Do I not get a hello, Dora?” James asks.

Nymphadora climbs off the bench and runs over to hug James, who laughs as he greets her. She doesn’t spend much time over there, coming back to sit on the bench after a minute or so. 

“Hm?” She looks up at him, Regulus assuming she wants him to answer what she asked before. 

“Playing,” He answers, pointing at the book on the piano before continuing to work at it. He doesn’t  _ like _ it, but with James, he’s grown to be a little more comfortable practicing while someone is talking.

“I want to pick,” She reaches out.

“Not from this one,” He says, grabbing that book and putting it on the ground beside the piano. He gets up and grabs one of the ones he got for his birthday that he’s decently familiar with. He hands it to her and she flips through it before luckily handing him one he knows pretty well.

“This,” She says, and Regulus sets it on the stand. He plays through it pretty easily, considering he just worked on it recently. He also has to ignore James talking to Sirius, although James’ voice is slowly becoming easier to make background noise when he has to. 

She claps when he finishes, “Yay! Another another!”

Regulus flips to another one he knows well, playing through that one too. About halfway through, Nymphadora decides that a nice background of her constantly pressing C8 would add a lot to this piece. He luckily doesn’t have to get that high, so he just ignores her. It throws him off a little, but oh well. She’s 3, she has no idea.

“Yay!” She claps again, “More?”

“Only if you don’t touch the keys,” He says, taking her hand away from the piano.

“But I want to help.”

“I know, but you can’t touch while I play,” Regulus tells her.

“Teach me,” She presses on one of the keys, “Teach me a song like you.”

“Hmm,” He puzzles for something he can teach her, “What about this?”

He plays two notes at a time of Twinkle Twinkle Little Star, letting her copy after him. He helps her through playing it all, the same thing he did with another song this summer. 

“You did it,” He smiles at her.

“Yeah!” She cheers, getting down from the bench, “I want to see Sirius paint now.”

“Alright,” Regulus laughs, switching back out his book and going back to what he was doing. Nymphadora bothers Sirius, asking a million questions about what he’s doing and how he’s doing it Regulus stops listening after a while, and he’s pretty sure at some point Sirius gives her a small piece of paper and some relatively clean art supply for her to toy with. It’s 1:15. 45 minutes until Cynthia gets here. 

He’s just a  _ little _ excited.


	59. For a Moment

“Regulus,” Mr. Potter peeks his head into the piano room, “I think who is at the door is for you, kid.”

Regulus gets up and slips out of the room, walking up to the front door and opening it. He barely gets to process who is on the other side before Cynthia throws her arms around him, effectively almost toppling him over.

“Hi Reggie,” She greets, still hugging the life out of him, “I missed you.”

“I missed you too,” He answers, stepping back to see her looking at something behind him. He turns around to see James, smiling over at the two of them and holding Nymphadora’s hand.

“That’s who you wouldn’t tell me about?” James asks, “That’s so fun though, I should have been allowed to know.”

“You do know,” Regulus points out, “You know now.”

“That’s not the same,” He argues, letting go of Nymphadora’s hand as she walks over to Regulus, “Oh, bye Dora.”

“Bye!” She calls, looking up at both Regulus and Cynthia, “Hi!”

“Hi Dora,” He says, “Want to say hi?”

“Yeah!” She holds her arms up, Regulus picking her up. She looks over at Cynthia and waves.

“Hi! Uhh,” She looks at Regulus, moving to loudly whisper in his ear, “What’s her name?”

“Cynthia,” He quietly tells her and she looks back over.

“Cynthia!” She repeats, struggling to pronounce it a little but getting the general gist.

“Hello!” Cynthia smiles back.

“Dora,” Regulus starts, “Weren’t you drawing with Sirius?” 

“Mhm!” She nods.

“Why don’t you finish that?”

She shakes her head, “I want to be with you.”

“You can come be with us after, but Sirius misses you,” He bargains, and it seems to be enough for her before she lets him let her down and she heads off into the other room. 

“That was easy,” She laughs, “Anyway, it’s your house, where are we going?”

Regulus glances upstairs, “Kick your shoes off, we’ll hide in my room, James and Sirius are in the piano room.”

“Sounds good to me,” Cynthia answers, taking her shoes off before following after Regulus upstairs and into his room. She shuts the door after herself, looking around as Regulus grabs a seat on his bed. 

“So this is my room,” He introduces her, “You don’t have to look so starstruck, I’ve described it before.”

“It’s different to actually see, Reggie,” She comments, walking over to the dresser. She examines the photos, picking up one and turning it around, “This is a cute picture, when was this?”

“Bring it over here,” He tells her, Cynthia walking over to sit on his bed, handing him the photo of him, James, and Sirius this summer. “Oh, this was towards the beginning of August,” He hands it back, “Yeah, I like that picture.”

She walks over and sets it back on the dresser, looking up at the set of Sirius’ constellation art, “This stayed here this year?”

He nods, “I have no reason to not leave it anymore.”

“Fair point,” She nods, walking back over to sit on the bed, “So, there has to be something new with you.”

Regulus shrugs, but he doesn’t get to say anything before she leans forward.

“Where did you get that from?” She questions, pointing at the cut on his face from Friday.

“Oh, one of James’ little cousins,” He says, “She didn’t mean it, well, not really. One of them fell into a table and a vase broke, and she had a piece of glass in her hand she didn’t want one of the other kids to take. I just happened to be next to her.”

“That looks kind of bad, though,” She comments.

“Yeah, Mrs. Potter has been trying to fix it,” He shrugs, “It’s not that bad.”

“Whatever you say,” She laughs, both of them looking over as the door opens.

Mrs. Potter peeks in, “Hello dear, I just wanted to come say hello, I won’t take up too much of your time.”

“It’s fine,” He says, gesturing to Cynthia, “This is Cynthia.”

Mrs. Potter smiles at her, “Nice to meet you, Cynthia.”

“Nice to meet you as well,” She replies. 

“Oh,” She looks back at Regulus, “Ted said if Dora comes up here and you want her out of your hair you’re free to bring her down to him.”

Regulus nods, “Alright.”

“And if you need anything just let me know,” She says.

“I will,” Regulus answers, “Thank you.”

“Of course dear,” She smiles before shutting the door and heading back downstairs. 

“Aw, she’s very nice,” Cynthia says, leaning back on her hands.

“I told you that,” Regulus points out, “But yeah, she is.”

“Does she know I snuck out to get here?”

Regulus nods, “She said the other day that it’s fine because it’s not like you’re doing anything bad.”

“Good,” She pauses a moment, “The Christmas Eve party was  _ so _ weird this year.”

“I would imagine.”

“Yeah, I hadn’t seen your mother before that,” Cynthia shakes her head, “She’s lost it, completely off the deep end. It’s kind of satisfying, though, because normally she’s boasting about you wherever she talks to anyone, but she was talking to my dad she and you could tell she was trying not to say anything about either of you.”

“I hope she’s suffering,” Regulus mutters.

Cynthia laughs, “Valid hope, she’s a bitch.”

“You can say that again,” He sighs, looking over as the door creaks open. Nymphadora walks inside, smiling at them.

“Hi!” She greets, walking over to the bed and holding up her arms so Regulus can help her up onto the bed. She sits herself in his lap and looks at Cynthia. She grabs out for her hair, but Regulus takes her hand away.

“No,” He softly scolds, “Ask first.”

She looks up at Cynthia, “Can I touch? I’ll show something.”

“You can,” She pushes her hair forward. Nymphadora reaches out and grabs her hair, staring at it a moment before her hair turns a similar strawberry blonde to Cynthia’s. 

Cynthia just stares at her, smiling in slight shock. Nymphadora looks between her and Regulus, excited for a reaction. 

“Good job!” He encourages, “That was good.”

“Yay!” She looks at Cynthia, “Do you like it?”

She snaps out of it, nodding, “Yeah, it’s just like mine.”

“Yeah!” She answers, her hair fading back to deep purple, “Now it’s not.”

“No,” She laughs, looking up at Regulus, “You just didn’t mention that?”

“Oh, Dora is a metamorphmagus,” He jokingly tells her, “There, I mentioned it.”

“Wow, thanks,” She sarcastically replies, looking down at Nymphadora toys with Regulus’ watch. “I should have realized with the purple.”

He nods, “I thought the same thing when I went over Andy’s this summer.”

“That was a long time ago,” Nymphadora comments, “I was tiny.”

“Yeah, you were very tiny,” He laughs, “Anyway, how long did you buy off your siblings for?”

“Until 4,” She says, “Which is honestly longer than I thought I would, considering they were both not happy.”

“Do you, uh do you,” Nymphadora looks up at him, “Do you go to school with her?”

“Mhm,” Regulus nods, “We go to school together.”

“What color is she?” 

“Color?” He asks, “Like house?”

“Like Mum is green,” She explains, “And Dad is yellow.”

“Oh, we’re both green,” He tells her, “See the tie in there?” He points at his trunk, open with his tie sitting on top of a couple of other things.

She gets off the bed and grabs it, “Green!” 

“Mhm,” He nods, “Want me to put it on you?”

“Yeah!” She tries to clamor back onto the bed, needing Regulus’ help again. She hands him the tie and he ties it loosely around her neck. She grabs it and looks at it, “Like you!” 

“Mhm, like me, and like your Mum,” He tells her.

“I’ll go show Dad,” She gets off the bed and runs out of the room, heading downstairs.

Cynthia laughs, “You’re so good with her.”

Regulus shrugs, “I’m not that good, I don’t really know what I’m doing most of the time.”

“Still,” Cynthia maintains, “And you  _ are _ good, she wouldn’t like you if you weren’t.”

“Eh,” He shrugs again, “Whatever you say.”

“You just know I’m right,” She replies, looking over at the door as footsteps come stampeding upstairs, “That sounded like more than just her.”

“No, that was James,” Regulus deduces, “He climbs stairs like an elephant.”

“No kidding,” She laughs, “And you say I’m loud.”

“No, you just fall up the stairs,” He jokes, “ _ All the time _ .”

“Hey,” She pokes him, “It’s not my fault I’m clumsy.”

Nymphadora runs back into the room, a gold and red tie around her neck, the silver and green one in her hand. She’s smiling like an idiot.

“James said no green,” She hands it back to him, “I’m red!” 

Regulus shakes his head and laughs, “Dora, what color do  _ you _ want to be?”

“Uhm,” She thinks, “I like Dad’s color.”

“Yellow?” He asks, and she nods. “You can be yellow, that’s a good color.”

“Not red?” She asks, looking down at the tie around her neck.

“Red is also ok, but I think yellow is cooler,” Regulus explains, “Do you?”

She nods, “Yeah! Dad is cool.”

“Do you want to wear the green tie or the red one?”

“I want red like Sirius,” She says, pointing at her head, “Up here.”

“I can tie the green one,” He offers, picking her up and putting her on the bed. He takes off the tie around her neck, replacing it with the Slytherin one. He hands her the Gryffindor tie, “Go have Sirius do it.”

“Ok!” She climbs off the bed and heads downstairs, leaving the door open as she does. 

“She’s too cute,” Cynthia laughs, “And I never knew Andromeda married a Hufflepuff.”

Regulus nods, “A muggleborn and a Hufflepuff. Andy likes pushing the boundaries.”

“You say like you don’t kind of do the same thing,” Cynthia challenges, “You kind of did leave.” 

He shrugs, “Nothing compared to Sirius, though, I’ll always be outshined in that department.”

“Ok, fair,” She laughs, silence falling between them a moment.

“How is Turtle?” Regulus asks, “I miss her.”

“You miss her and  _ not _ me?” She asks, jokingly offended, “You’re so  _ mean _ .”

“I said I missed you!” He argues, laughing, “I said it when you came in.”

“Ok, but you don’t really miss me.”

“You’re right here, how can I miss you?” He shakes his head, “Ok, but I want to know about Turtle first, you can yell at me about missing you after.”

“She’s doing great, she’s enjoying being home,” Cynthia tells him, “She likes that I have a bigger bed, but she still likes to sleep directly in the center.”

“Of course, as she deserves to,” Regulus nods, “She deserves the entire bed.”

“But I have to sleep!”

“No, you don’t,” He denies, “Not when she’s sleeping.”

“You’re impossible,” Cynthia laughs, looking over at the door. Regulus looks over as well, seeing James leaning in the doorway.

“Hi!” He waves, “How are you both?”

“We’re good,” Cynthia answers, “How are you, James?”

“I’m good! Sirius told me to grab something but I don’t remember what it was,” James replies, “I hope it wasn’t important.”

“He can get it himself,” Regulus remarks.

“You know what? I agree, he’s been sitting down there all day,” He comments, “I don’t know how you and him just sit and do the same thing for hours on end. I can’t do one thing for more than a couple of hours or I’ll explode.”

“And I don’t get how you leave things unfinished,” Regulus points out.

“Where is your stance on this, Cynthia?” James asks. 

“Same as Reggie, I do things in one sitting,” She answers, “We’re taught not to leave things unfinished.”

“Aw, is that one of those strange childhood things you and Sirius were taught?” James sighs, “Why didn’t I realize that?”

Regulus shrugs. 

“So, how are you two doing?”

“You asked that already,” Regulus reminds him.

James nods, “Yeah, yeah I-”

“James!” Mrs. Potter yells up the stairs, “What’re you doing?”

“Nothing!” James answers.

“If I come up there and you’re annoying Regulus,” She threatens, James quietly waving and shutting the door behind him and yelling something back at his mother.

“Is it always like that?” Cynthia asks.

Regulus nods, “James loves to talk.”

“I can tell,” She laughs, “Is there anything else I should be caught up on? We have a decent amount of time more.”

“I don’t really have anything,” Regulus shrugs, “My life isn’t that interesting, Thia.”

“It’s certainly more interesting than mine at the moment,” She counters, “Have you played anything new?”

“Mhm,” Regulus nods, “Do you want to hear? Sirius is probably down there, though.”

“Yeah!” She happily replies, “I don’t care about Sirius, I care about hearing you, come on.”

Regulus gets up and heads downstairs, Cynthia following after him. He goes down into the piano room, where Sirius and Nymphadora are sitting together. Regulus and Cynthia grab a seat at the piano.

“This is a nice piano,” She comments,

Regulus nods, “I put it to good use this summer.”

“No kidding,” She laughs, pointing at the book on the piano, “What book is this?”

“A new one,” He says, playing through an excerpt of what he’s worked on, “Eh, that wasn’t great but you get the picture.”

“That was good,” She bumps him, “You don’t give yourself enough credit, how long have you had that?”

“Three days?” 

“See,” She laughs, “No way I could do that in three days.”

“You don’t know how to play piano,” He counters.

“I could if I tried,” She says, “Maybe not well, but I could.”

“Do it,” He moves over, “Play something.”

“Uhh, woah woah, I didn’t expect to be put on the spot,” She laughs putting her hands at the piano, “Let’s see how much I remember from when I was 5.”

She plays, very slowly, the simple, well-known, melody from Beethoven’s 9th: Ode to Joy. Probably the only thing other than Hot Cross Buns that she knows.

Regulus laughs, setting his hands at the piano, “You mean this?”

He plays the  _ actual _ piano part to Ode To Joy, to which she groans.

“Oh shut up,” She laughs, “You didn’t have to show off like that.”

“I had to make sure you knew where you stood,” He banters back. 

“Ok, ok, you’re better than I am,” She playfully rolls her eyes, “We knew that already.”

Regulus laughs and goes back to playing what’s in front of him, Cynthia moving to lay her head on his shoulder. The only sound in the room beside his playing turns into Sirius and Nymphadora talking. For a moment, it’s calm. For only a moment, though.

Nymphadora walks up behind the bench, pushing them apart, “No.”

Cynthia picks her head up and sits up, Nymphadora climbing up on the bench.

“What, Dora?” Regulus asks, confused for why she needed to push them apart.

“Sirius said no,” She crosses her arms, “Bad.”

Regulus groans, “Sirius.”

“She’s lying,” Sirius tries to counter, but it doesn’t work.

“No, I’m not!” She shakes her head, “You told me!” 

“No no no,” Sirius denies, “ _ You _ pushed them apart.”

“He told me,” She looks back up at Regulus, clearly upset, “Not lying.”

“I believe you, Dora,” Regulus sighs, looking over at Sirius, “Do you  _ mind _ leaving us alone?”

“I didn’t do shit-”

“Sirius,” He bites back, pointing at Dora.

“Shi- F-” He struggles for a reaction, “I didn’t do  _ anything _ .”

“You can paint downstairs if we’re somehow annoying you, leave us  _ alone _ ,” He repeats, picking Nymphadora up and putting her on the other side of him. Cynthia moves back to where she was before, leaning against him. On his other side, apparently Nymphadora wants to be included, leaning against him from the other side. He hears Sirius huff, but he doesn’t comment on it. Sirius acts like he doesn’t act just like this with James. Regulus kind of gets it, though. 

He feels loved.


	60. All About Her

Regulus watches as the owl carries his letter to Narcissa out the window. He really wants to see her before he goes back to school, especially considering she got married since the last time he saw her. Even she found her way out of the Black family. 

He goes to go back into the piano room, but Mrs. Potter stops him.

“Hold on a moment, Regulus,” She says, looking up from the letter in her hand and walking over to the stairs, “Sirius! James! Come down here for a moment please!”

Sirius and James come down the stairs, Sirius dressed to go out and James without a shirt. A very sharp comparison. 

“Haydn flooed me a letter, and he asked if it’s alright if he spends the afternoon here,” Mrs. Potter tells them, “I’m fine with it, but he would be with you boys, so I just wanted to ask.”

“I mean, I’m totally fine with it, but why?” James questions.

“He said he just needs to get out of the house,” She replies, “Sirius, Regulus, is that alright?”

“I’m not going to be here, I’m spending the afternoon with Andy,” Sirius reminds her, “I don’t care anyway, though.”

“Oh yes, that’s right,” She nods, “Well, then is that alright with you, Regulus? It’s fine if it’s not.”

“It’s fine,” He replies. Haydn is fine, he’s actually almost pleasant to talk to.

“Alright, perfect, I’ll let him know,” She nods, “You’re all free to go. And James, put on a shirt please.”

“I will I will,” James complies, “Bye Mum!” 

“I’ll call you when he gets here, James,” Mrs. Potter calls as James and Sirius head up the stairs. Regulus heads back into the piano room, shutting the door behind him. He hopes he has at least a couple of hours between now and when Haydn shows up to prepare himself because even him being in the house is going to drain him. It’s stupid, yes, but Regulus has absolutely no control over it. 

He pulls out one of his books he can practically play with his eyes closed and starts to mindlessly hack away at it.

***

Regulus hears voices from the living room, figuring Haydn got here and he probably should at least say hello. Or just wave, whatever he chooses.

He gets up from the piano and opens the door, peeking out into the living room. He sees Haydn stepping out from the fireplace, pulling Mrs. Potter into a hug. Haydn looks exhausted, and Regulus swears his eyes are all red.

“Thank you so much, Aunt Effie,” He thanks, “I just needed to be out of the house for a few hours.”

“Of course, dear, it’s not a problem,” She assures him, looking over at Regulus, “Hello, dear, would you mind grabbing James?”

Regulus nods and heads upstairs, opening the door to see James laying on his bed, half-asleep and still shirtless. 

“James,” Regulus calls, “Haydn is here.”

“Hm? Oh shit-” James gets up, grabbing a shirt off of his bedpost, throwing it on, “What do you mean I didn’t listen to Mum? I totally did.”

“Of course,” Regulus sarcastically answers, heading down the stairs with James following after him. 

“Haydn!” James cheers, heading over to give him a greeting hug, “It’s almost like I just saw you.”

“Almost,” Haydn laughs, looking back to Regulus, “Hi, Regulus.”

Regulus waves at him, James turning around to talk to Regulus.

“Did you get to that piece that I asked you about yesterday?” James asks, “No rush or anything, I’m just curious.”

“I did,” Regulus answers.

“Can I hear it?” James excitedly asks, “Please?”

Regulus shrugs, “Sure, it’s not done.”

“That’s fine, I’ll hear what you worked on,” James says, “I’m just emotionally invested in it now.”

“Whatever you say,” Regulus comments, walking off into the piano room. James and Haydn follow after him, James grabbing a seat on the ground and Haydn leaning in the doorway. 

“Haydn, come sit,” James pats the ground next to him, “Watch how fast Regulus’ hands move.”

“I can probably hear it, but alright,” He shrugs, sitting down and looking up at Regulus, “Is this fine?”

“Mhm,” He nods, grabbing the right book and sitting on the bench. He plays what James had asked him about, which is essentially just a piece of absolutely crazy jumps and runs. He trips over them so many times, but he warned James in advance that it wasn’t done.

“Jesus, that’s insane,” Haydn marvels, “I don’t even think that fast.”

“Reg, if that’s  _ not _ done, I can’t wait to hear it when it is done,” James comments, “It’s already crazy.”

“It’s mostly scales,” Regulus says, “They’re just fast.”

“Still,  _ I _ could never do that,” James counters, “I still find it crazy impressive.”

Regulus shrugs, glancing back at the book. He doesn’t take compliments well.

James looks over to Haydn, “So, how are you doing?”

“Eh,” He sighs, “My mother has been up my ass since you guys came over, it’s really driving me insane.” 

“What’s she doing?” James asks, “She was kind of like that when we were there, too.”

“Every little thing I do, she’s on me for. The other day I bumped into Tim with a cup of water for Dianna, it spilled on him mostly and he was totally fine,” Haydn explains, “She flipped out, asking me why I wasn’t watching and was all upset that I ‘got water everywhere’, which I  _ didn’t _ .”

“Jeez, what happened to her?” James questions, “Why is she suddenly like that?”

“She gets like that sometimes, but it’s only ever with me,” Haydn hesitates, “Hell, only if I knew why. She likes to pull the ‘Do you know what would have happened to me when  _ I _ was your age?’ card on me as if I’m claiming that everything in my life sucks. She does that same thing when I say something like ‘Hey, I’m struggling with this’, it’s ‘Well, did you know all of these things I grew up with?’”

“How does that relate to you?”

“Exactly,” Haydn looks at Regulus, “Sorry, you’re hearing all my life problems unsolicited.”

“It’s fine,” Regulus answers. He really doesn’t mind, especially knowing Fiona grew up similar to how he did. It’s strange she would  _ ever _ use that as leverage.

“I mean, ok, this is a bad comparison, but I know your mum grew up kind of like Sirius and Reg did because Sirius talked to me about it,” James says, “But I’ve vented to Sirius  _ and _ Reg before, and neither of them has ever said anything like that to me. And my problems are stupid, right Reg?”

Regulus shakes his head, “It’s relative. I would never say that.”

“Yeah, exactly,” Haydn agrees, “I know her life was hard, yeah, whatever, but sometimes it needs to not be  _ about _ her. And I swear I don’t hate her, most of the time she’s perfectly fine. I can’t really be picky, though, they didn’t  _ have _ to give me a home.”

“But it doesn’t give her an excuse to say shit like that,” James argues, “What does your dad think about it?”

“He’s somewhere in the middle, sometimes he tells me to leave it and sometimes he asks her to stop,” Haydn answers, “He’s not a very emotional guy, so his default is to just cheer me up, which is not always what I need.”

James nods. “Yeah, that makes sense. Although I like to be cheered up, I get what you mean,” James looks up at Regulus, “Reg, any input?”

Regulus contemplates his answer a moment, not knowing if he wants to push it that far. But he’s already here, might as well. “Reminds me of my mother.”

“Oh shit, that’s a high insult,” James looks back to Haydn, “Reg and Sirius’ mother is batshit insane, you do  _ not _ want to be compared to her.”

“Yeah, Walburga Black? My mum has told me about her,” Haydn nods, “I totally understand if you’re not comfortable talking about it, but how so, Regulus? I’m just interested, but I know that might be a little far.”

Regulus, feeling particularly confident today, for some reason, decides that the only way he’ll get over it is if he talks about it, even a little. “If you complained, she always one-uped you, said she’ll give you something to complain about. And she did, but...” Regulus’ sentence falls off, just shrugging.

“Yeah, that sounds a little like my mother, maybe more extreme for you but I see what you mean,” Haydn sighs, “She would be fuming right now, knowing she was being justifiable compared to her. Maybe if she listened to me, though, she wouldn’t be. She has always had a hatred for the Black family, whenever they came up in anything we heard about it.”

“Yeah, my mum did  _ not _ want me friends with Sirius at first,” James agrees, “She was just afraid he was crazy purist, but when she met him she realized he wasn’t. Reg, you do not match your family.”

“Good.”

“But yeah, back to your mother,” James says, “This is going to sound so stupid of me, but have you tried talking to her about it?”

“She doesn’t listen,” Haydn answers, “This morning we got into a huge argument about it because she was asking me to do so much and I just felt so overwhelmed. She told me to put away the dishes that I didn’t do last night because I was busy consoling Dianna because she’s afraid of thunderstorms and wouldn’t let go of me. It wasn’t anything new but it was just, the straw that broke the camel’s back almost? I snapped back at her about how she was asking too much, and she just yelled back at me about how I’m unappreciative or whatever. I had a huge breakdown and decided to write Aunt Effie because I knew she would let me come over.”

“Does anyone know you’re here?” James asks.

“Tim does, he’s tolerable when it’s against our mother,” Haydn says, “My dad was out when I left, but my mum has no idea. She probably just thinks I went out, I’m sure I’ll hear it tonight.”

“Have my mum floo you home,” James suggests, “Maybe she’ll at least reduce the scolding.” 

“I’ll ask her before I leave, yeah,” Haydn nods, “I’m sorry, I’m dumping so much on you two.”

“It’s no problem, we’re here to listen,” James assures him, “Right, Reg?”

Regulus nods.

“Here, this floor is uncomfortable,” James gets up and holds a hand out to Haydn, “We’ll sit on my bed, that’s more comfortable.”

Haydn grabs James’ hand and gets up, Regulus not sure if he’s being invited or if they’re trying to get away from him.

“Come on, Reg,” James gestures for him to follow, “I feel like you’re already invested in this.”

Regulus nods, getting up and following after him. James is kind of right, he is a little invested in this. They go up into Sirius and James’ room, which is a total mess. There’s stuff all over the floors, and neither bed is made. 

“Oh shit, our room is a mess,” James curses, “Oh there’s shit everywhere. Reg, would you mind if we went in your room instead?” 

Regulus shrugs, “I don’t care.”

“Ok, redirecting us into Reg’s much cleaner room,” James turns around, Regulus leading the two into his room, which is  _ not _ dirty at  _ all _ . He grabs a seat on his bed, watching Haydn looks around the room. James, however, jumps onto the bed.

“Damn, your room is spotless,” Haydn comments, “I’m used to this room being filled with unused garbage.”

“Reg keeps his room impossibly clean, I don’t get it,” James laughs, Haydn taking a seat next to him. “There’s never anything on the floors, Mum always scolds us by saying Reg manages to throw his clothes in the hamper.”

“Your room is a little too messy, James,”  Haydn jokingly argues.

“Sorry your room stays spotless, Haydn,” James pokes back, “Anyway, about Aunt Fiona, keep going.”

“We had Uncle Lionel over on Sunday and, you know, he’s fine, he came over to talk to my dad, but my mom  _ hates  _ him because he’s into all that shit she grew up with,” Haydn says, “He mentioned what he was at on Christmas Eve, and she was telling me about how I should be appreciative that I don’t go to one of those because me talking back about the kids wouldn’t have been tolerated, even though I thought we were long over that.”

“Reg, you and Sirius mentioned that at the table the other day,” James comments, “Right?”

Regulus nods, pointing at the photo album on the dresser, “Can you grab that?”

James gets up and grabs his photo album, jumping back on the bed and handing it to him, “You have pictures of it?”

Regulus nods again, searching through the book for one of the Christmas Eve pictures. He finds one from when he was around 3 or 4, so all 5 of them are there, turning it around and showing it to them.

“Sorry, this is going to be definitely offensive, but  _ what _ are you wearing?” Haydn asks, “You look about 2 in that picture.”

“Formal dress,” He answers, taking it out and looking at the date on the back, “I was almost 4.”

“Holy- you were almost 4? You were small,” Haydn comments, “Andrien isn’t even that small.”

“And Andrien is a small 3-year-old,” James comments, “But Reg is small now, no offense Reg.”

“How tall are you?” Haydn asks, “Sorry, that was out of the blue, I was just wondering.”

“166 centimeters,” Regulus answers. 

“Damn, is your family short?”

Regulus shrugs, “Kind of.”

“Andromeda is taller than you are, right?” James asks, “She’s tall.”

“She’s taller than Sirius,” Regulus answers. 

“Andromeda is their cousin, Haydn, for reference,” James explains.

“Yeah, you mentioned her in a letter, she has the 3-year-old right?” Haydn asks, and James nods. “Mhm, you did.”

“Haydn!” Mrs. Potter yells up the stairs, “Can you come down here a moment, dear?”

“Oh shit,” Haydn freezes, listening for a second, “Fuck, I think my mum is here,  _ shit _ .”

“What if you just don’t-”

“Haydn!” Mrs. Potter yells again, “Come on!”

“Well, I guess that’s not an option,” James rubs the back of his neck.

Regulus looks at Haydn, whose face is painted with anxiety. He feels kind of bad because he knows a little how that feels, and it feels horrible. But, he also knows the longer you wait the worse it gets. 

Mrs. Potter’s voice grows stern, but not angry, “Haydn!” 

“Coming!” 


	61. Odd Bonding

Regulus watches as Haydn walks out of the room, a posture he recognizes as reluctancy. Once he gets downstairs, James grabs Regulus’ hand.

“Come here, I want to hear,” James says, pulling Regulus about halfway down the stairs. Regulus _knows_ he shouldn’t be eavesdropping on this, it’s gotten him Crucioed so many times. He almost bails out, but James wraps an arm around his shoulders. It’s rooting enough that he stays, as anxious as it makes him.

“Sorry, I came over here for a little while,” Haydn apologizes, although nothing about it is genuine.

“I’ll leave you two to talk, I have to finish with the basement,” Mrs. Potter says, “I’ll be just downstairs if you need anything.”

“Thank you, Effie,” Fiano replies, “I’m sure we’ll be fine, it was nice seeing you again.”

“You as well,” She answers, heading back downstairs. Both of them wait until the door to the basement clicks closed before they start talking.

“Mum-” Haydn tries to get in his word first, but it doesn’t work.

“No, you’re letting me talk first,” She stops him, “You just decided to leave this morning with absolutely no note, not a single thing I asked you to do done? Not only is that irresponsible but that’s selfish, I had not a clue where you went. What made you think that was appropriate?”

“Because I needed to get out of the house this morning,” He argues, clearly trying to sound calm, “I was overwhelmed and needed a break so I flooed over here.”

“But you didn’t tell me?” She questions, “You decided it was better to leave unannounced than to let me know that?”

“Because you wouldn’t have listened, you _aren’t_ listening,” He partially pleads, annoyance just barely creeping into his tone.

“I am listening,” She answers, although it does not sound like the truth in the slightest. “Tell me why you needed a break.”

Regulus involuntarily shakes his head as if Haydn can see him, James looking over confused. Regulus mouths ‘A trap’ at him and James nods in slight realization, although he clearly has no idea what that means.

“I was overwhelmed with all you were asking me to do this morning, and our argument made me really anxious, and in an effort not to let it get worse, I came over here,” He explains, “I told you that today, and you didn’t listen.”

“Because what I asked you were very simple chores,” She counters, “The dishes were not done, your clothes were not put away, downstairs is still not cleaned, there are three bags of trash sitting on the landing still-”

“Mum,” He stops her, “This is what I mean.”

“I’m telling you what I’ve already asked you to do, this is nothing new.”

“But it’s overwhelming-”

“It’s not about you,” She cuts him off, “It’s about keeping up your responsibilities, the ones you only have to do on break. They’re not overwhelming, Haydn, don’t be dramatic.”

“I’m not trying to be dramatic,” He replies, losing all bite in his voice, “You asked me to tell you what was wrong.”

“I did not ask you to complain about simple things, there are so many people who have it so much worse,” She points out, “You should be grateful all I’m asking you to do is clean the dishes.”

“I am grateful,” He weakly counters.

“Well, you certainly don’t show it,” She bites back, “Grateful kids don’t ignore their parents.”

“I’m not-”

“Yes, you are,” She shoots back, “I asked you to do some of this stuff days ago, I’m done hearing the same excuse.” 

“I’ll do it, I just can’t have you on my back about it.”

“Now it’s my fault?” She questions, “I’m the reason these things aren’t done?”

“No, just-”

“It certainly sounds like it.”

“Can you let me finish?” He annoyedly counters, “I can’t explain anything when you interrupt me.”

“Do _not_ speak to me like that,” Fiona scolds, “I am your mother, you know not to give me lip. You have explained yourself, and I’ve heard enough of your excuses, Haydn.”

“They’re not excuses,” He weakly argues.

“They are, and you know I don’t tolerate excuses,” She shoots back, “You do what you’re asked, and then you can spend your time however you like. Don’t fight me on it.”

“Mum stop,” He tries to plead, but she doesn’t listen.

“You are so fortunate, Haydn, and I thought more of you than to take advantage of it,” She continues, “I’m not asking for the dramatics, or the running away when you don’t want to do something. I’m asking you to act your age and appreciate, maybe a little, what we’ve given you. Do you understand?”

“Yes,” He quietly answers, “Sorry.”

“What?” She challenges.

“I’m sorry,” He apologizes again. 

“For what?”

“I’m sorry, I’m sorry,” His breathing hitches as he struggles for a response. James lets go of Regulus, Regulus failing to grab him before he goes downstairs. That’s _not_ smart, that’s so so not smart. 

“Hi Aunt Fiona,” James greets, “What’s wrong, Haydn?”

“Nothing, Haydn is fine,” She brushes him off, “Go back upstairs, James.”

“No, why is Haydn crying?” James asks, a knowing tone in his voice. He’s not really hiding that he was listening. 

“It’s nothing, James, just go back upstairs,” Fiona urges, more annoyed this time. Regulus can’t see what happened, but the gap in talking lets him know someone did something. And it was probably James. “Terminez ce que vous disiez, Haydn.” _Finish what you were saying, Haydn._

“I’m sorry,” Haydn quietly replies.

“Regardez-moi,” She demands, “Tu sais que c'est impoli.” _Look at me. You know it’s rude._

“I’m...” He fails at repeating, so quiet Regulus barely hears it. 

Fiona annoyedly huffs, “Reviens à la maison quand tu es prêt à me parler, d'accord?” _Come back home when you’re ready to talk to me, alright?_

Haydn must have nodded because she keeps talking.

“I’ll see you soon, James, tell your dad I said hello,” She bids goodbye, “Comportez, Haydn.” _Behave, Haydn_.

She walks off and Regulus hears the fire flare, meaning she flooed back home. 

“Haydn, are you ok?” James asks concern dripping from his tone. Regulus steps down onto the last step, looking over at the two of them. Haydn turns back, and Regulus immediately knows what that face means. He’s seen Sirius in it so many times before. Haydn is working himself into a panic attack and James has no idea what he’s doing. 

Regulus beckons for them to follow him, going upstairs and leading them into his room. At least it’s not a mess, Regulus knows that drives him insane. Regulus grabs a seat on his bed, Haydn and James following. Haydn is shaking and hyperventilating, clearly distressed. James reaches out to put a hand on his shoulder, but Haydn moves away from him. James glances at Regulus panicked.

“Shit,” James looks between the two of them, “Haydn, do you need help? Or should we just sit?”

“Help,” He breathes in between panicked breaths. 

James looks at Regulus, “Reg, how do we help?”

Regulus suppresses his _own_ panic because, between the prospect of calming down Haydn and ignoring James’ really unhelpful panic, Regulus is sure his hands are shaking. But he’s done this before, and he’s had it done to him. All you have to do is count and reassure. 

“Haydn,” Regulus says, his voice smaller than anticipated, “You just need to breathe, I’ll help, mhm?”

He gives Hadyn a moment to process, only starting to count when he nods. Regulus is partially calming himself down doing this, but it’s primarily helping Haydn. He consistently makes sure to assure him he’s doing good. It works on Sirius, and it seems to be working on him. 

Finally, James asks, “Are you ok?”

Haydn nods, his eyes closed, still catching his breath a little. James visibly relaxes, nodding back.

“Good, that’s good,” James says, clearly more trying to assure himself. Regulus just watches Haydn, waiting in case he crashes again. Luckily, he doesn’t, rather opening his eyes and looking between Regulus and James. 

“Sorry,” Haydn whispers, “I don’t know where that came from.”

“It’s fine, you’re totally fine,” James assures him, “Sorry for scaring you, by the way.”

“You didn’t know,” He says, looking at Regulus, “Thank you, Regulus, you’re really good at that.”

Regulus gives him a small smile in response, just happy he could help.

“Reg has a calming presence,” James comments, “I am helpful to one person, and that’s Sirius. Anyone else? Forget it.”

“We’re aware,” Regulus deadpans.

“I try my best,” James justifies, “But I only know hugs.”

“I would have killed you if you hugged me,” Haydn says, wiping tears with his sleeve.

Regulus nods in agreement, “Don’t do that.”

“I will keep it in mind,” James laughs, “But seriously Haydn, are you sure you’re ok? Is there anything we can do or something?”

“No, it’s fine,” Haydn shakes his head, pausing a moment, “I’m sure you were eavesdropping?”

James nods, “Yeah, maybe we were.”

“You made me,” Regulus counters.

“Yeah, maybe I did that,” James admits, “But that was disgusting! I mean, I’ve always known Aunt Fiona is strict but that was _horrible_!”

Haydn shrugs, “She’s been getting more and more like that, I don’t know where it comes from.”

“What was the thing you said was a trap, Reg?” James asks, “You were very expressive during that.”

“I’ve heard it before,” Regulus says, “And when she said to tell her what’s wrong.”

“Yeah, I should have caught that,” Haydn agrees, “Do you see what I mean, though, when I say she doesn’t fucking listen?”

“Yeah, what the fuck?” James asks, laughing nervously, “She took everything you said and made it bad. What you were saying made _total_ sense, and every time she, like-”

“Made it about her?” Haydn proposes, and James nods. “It’s annoying as shit and absolutely horrendous for my anxiety, but this break she’s decided she doesn’t care. She does it to Tim sometimes but he argues back.”

“Yeah, he doesn’t seem like that would work on him,” James comments. 

“It doesn’t because he doesn’t really care,” Haydn sighs, “But when she piles stuff on top of me like that and then annoys me until I do them, ugh, it makes me feel like I’m going to vomit.” 

Regulus nods. God does he know that feeling well.

“That’s not good, like, at all,” James rubs the back of his neck, looking at Regulus, “Reg, I feel like you’re more qualified in this scenario to like, help.”

“I wish I knew how,” Regulus says, “I know that feeling.”

“And, I don’t know about how things are for you or whatever, but sometimes after she talks to me like that it feels like my skin is crawling,” He cringes, “Like I physically spend 10 minutes shaking it off of me.”

Regulus nods again, yet another feeling he understands. 

“I feel like I sound a little crazy.”

“You’re not,” Regulus shakes his head.

“You know what I’m talking about?” Haydn asks, Regulus nodding in affirmation. “Damn, wait, that’s kind of cool, Tim says I’m insane. Well, that’s not cool, it’s shitty but- you get what I mean, hopefully.”

“Mhm,” Regulus affirms, “Like spiders.”

“That’s exactly what it feels like,” Haydn attests, “And then my dad is all touchy-feely, which is fine, but he doesn’t ask and it just makes it so much worse.”

“I hate most touch.”

“I just don’t like it when I’m worked up, but I know what you mean,” Haydn nods, “This is where I feel like I’m going to lose you, but I like to talk through things, and neither of my parents are good at that. They don’t know how to listen and not give me advice or physical comfort, neither of which I need.”

Regulus shakes his head, “I can’t talk when I’m anxious.”

“Like, ok, you can not answer this,” Haydn clarifies, “But physically can’t or don’t want to?”

“Both, more the first.”

“That’s so weird- not in a bad way, just interesting,” Haydn jumps to explain, “That the brain can just fail to make words? That’s so strange. I find psychology cool, sorry.”

“It’s fine,” Regulus assures him, “I despise it.”

“I could imagine that can get really annoying really quick,” Haydn looks over to James, “You look confused.”

“Yeah, I have no idea what either of you are talking about,” James laughs, “But if you’re bonding, have at it.”

“I’m learning,” Haydn says, looking over as the door to Regulus’ room opens, “Hi, Aunt Effie.”

“Hello dear,” She smiles, “Two things: One, Haydn, is everything alright?”

Haydn nods, “Yeah, it’s fine. Don’t worry about it.”

“You’re sure? Your mother did not seem happy.”

“She wasn’t, it’s fine,” He brushes her off again, “I promise.”

“Alright,” She concedes before looking at James, “Number two, _why_ is yours and Sirius’ room a _mess_ , James?”

“Whoops!” James smiles, “I was going to clean it, but then I fell asleep, and all of a sudden Reg came in telling me Haydn was here, so I didn’t get the chance.”

She sighs, shaking her head, “You’re impossible. It will be cleaned by tomorrow so I can dust and do all that laundry though, correct?”

“Mhm!” James nods, “I’ll do it with Sirius when he gets home, I promise.”

“You better,” She jokingly threatens, “I have nothing for you Regulus, I feel I should after asking them both something but your room is not a mess.”

Regulus softly laughs.

“Just let me know if you need anything, boys,” Mrs. Potter says, “I’ll be finishing cleaning up downstairs if you need me.”

“Ok, we will Mum,” Jame answers. 

“Thank you, Aunt Effie,” Haydn smiles at her. Regulus opts for staying quiet. Mrs. Potter shuts the door and goes back downstairs, James getting up and looking around. 

“What’re you doing?” Regulus questions, confused about what he’s looking for.

“Looking for something to do,” James says, looking in what’s left in his trunk. 

“Why are you looking there?”

“I don’t know, I’m looking everywhere,” James shrugs, “What’s this?” 

James pulls out a book of music from Regulus’ Music class. 

“Music,” Regulus answers.

“Oh, shit, is it?” James looks at the cover, “Yeah it is, I’m an idiot. Anyway, what should we do, guys?”

Regulus shrugs, looking to Haydn for his answer. “Nothing complicated, I don’t want to expend that much effort.”

“Uh, what’s something mindless?” James puzzles before looking up at Regulus, “Do you have any suggestions?” 

Regulus shakes his head, “Other than listen to me play? No.”

“I wouldn’t mind that,” Haydn says, “Piano sounds nice to listen to at the moment.”

“Alright Reg, you win,” James laughs, “Lead the way!” 

Regulus jokingly rolls his eyes at James before heading downstairs and into the piano room, Haydn and James following after him. He grabs his personal favorite book to play from, holding it out to the two of them sitting on the ground. 

“Do you want to pick?”

“Oh, hell yes,” James takes it, “Haydn, which should we pick?”

“You know all of these?” Haydn asks him, and Regulus nods. “That’s fucking insane.”

James flips through it, pointing at the one he _always_ picks before handing it back. 

“You always pick this one,” Regulus comments, setting the book on the stand.

“It’s my favorite to listen to,” James looks at Haydn, “You’ll like it, it’s very cool.” 

“I believe you,” Haydn nods, both of them falling silent as Regulus finishes running through something to get his hands moving. 

And then he starts off on the piece, hearing James happily hum along to it.


	62. Do You Fancy Her?

Regulus lands on the roof after James, propping his broom up so it stays. James sets down the bag on his back and sits down, taking out two cups and a half-full bottle of  _ goddamn Firewhiskey _ . 

“Where did you get that?” Regulus asks, sitting down next to him. 

“Sirius,” James smiles, pouring them both a portion of a cup, “He said he was having it with Andromeda and when she offered it to him he said yes, forgetting Mum would  _ kill _ him if she found it. I asked if I could take it up here with you and he  _ reluctantly  _ said yes.”

“Well, he doesn’t have to see me drink it,” Regulus says, taking the cup James is offering him, “How are you getting rid of the bottle?”

“Yeah, I’ll let Sirius figure that out,” James laughs, silence falling over them as they both take a sip. “So, how are you doing?”

“Alright,” Regulus answers, “How are you?”

“Good! Today was interesting with Haydn and everything,” James comments, “I hope he’s doing alright, right Reg?”

“Mhm,” Regulus agrees. He watches James struggle for a conversation topic for a moment before speaking.

“Can I- Actually, no I’ll ask that later, I’ll ask this now,” James decides, “Are you seeing Narcissa this week?”

Regulus nods, “Thursday.” 

“That’s cool that’s cool,” James idly nods a moment, before pointing at his cup, “When did you start drinking? I never thought you’d be one for that, you know?”

Regulus shrugs, “Probably the same age that I first saw Sirius do it, 13?”

“Do you smoke like him?”

“No,” Regulus shakes his head, “I was scared of it when I was younger, not my pace.”

“Why were you scared of it?” James questions, “My dad used to smoke, but not anymore.”

“My mother used to tell me it would kill me because I had asthma as a kid.”

“You had asthma?” James asks, almost in shock, “That’s so funny, well it’s not funny at all, but- I don’t know, that’s just cool. I like learning strange things about people.”

“Sounds right,” Regulus nods, looking up at the particularly clear sky. There are a couple of clouds, but as stormy as it’s been recently this is really clear. 

“When I was a kid my cousins and I used to put grass in their pool because we thought it would make lily pads,” James tells him, “It never worked.”

“Wonder why,” Regulus softly laughs, pausing a moment, “I can’t swim.”

“You can’t?!” James exclaims, Regulud shaking his head, “We’ll teach you this summer, you have to know how to swim- wait, but Sirius can, right?”

“Mhm,” Regulus nods, “Andy taught him.”

James nods, thinking for another strange childhood fact. “I can’t ride a bike, but I can rollerskate.” 

“How?” Regulus questions, “How did that happen?”

“I honestly have no idea,” James laughs, “Rosetta taught me. She used to ice skate too, so I can do that.”

“I can ice skate,” Regulus says, “Sirius too, but he sucks.”

“Who taught you?”

“Narcissa, who learned from my aunt,” Regulus explains, “She’s ridiculously good at it.”

“She gives off that energy,” James nods, “I don’t know why, she just does.”

“I know what you mean,” Regulus takes another sip of his drink, which is already almost empty.

“Do you want more?” James asks, Regulus nodding. James takes his cup from him and pours him more, handing it back, “Did you know I’m very allergic to lemons?”

Regulus looks at him over his cup, confused.

“Yeah, I don’t know why, but we found out when I was little and I almost died,” James stifles a laugh, “It’s not supposed to be funny, but it’s a little funny. I wasn’t a big medical nightmare when I was a kid, though, just that.”

“I was,” Regulus mentions, “There was always something wrong with me.”

“Really?” James puzzles, “How so?”

“For one, I was always sick, like all the time,” Regulus starts, “I had pneumonia twice before I was 11, I had the flu numerous times, and I had pink eye once that almost made me go blind in one eye.”

“Holy _ shit _ , Reg!” James stares at him in shock, “What the fuck?”

Regulus shrugs, “I was a sick kid.”

“That’s a little more than just sick, like, pink eye is easy to treat,” James counters, “I got it all the time because I used to mash my hands over everything-”

“You still do.”

“Ok look,” James laughs, “But really, that didn’t cause a lasting issue?”

“A little? I mean, I struggle seeing out of that eye,” Regulus shakes his head, “Why am I telling you this?”

“Struggle how?” James questions, “Like blurry or…”

Regulus shrugs, “I don’t know, I read with one eye closed if that helps.”

“You probably need glasses,” James gasps, “We could  _ both _ have glasses, that’d be so fun!”

“I don’t think I need glasses,” Regulus counters.

“No, closing an eye when you read? I used to do that,” James takes his glasses off and holds them up, “And now look where I am. You should get your eyes checked, Mum would totally make you get glasses if she found out you struggle to see.”

Regulus doesn’t answer, just taking another sip of what’s in his hand. He doesn’t know how he feels about the idea of having to wear glasses, and he  _ really _ doesn’t know how he feels about anyone else knowing what he just told James.

“Oh! This is probably a good time to ask what I was going to earlier,” James says, “Can I ask you about something you were talking to Haydn about today?”

“Go ahead.”

“You mentioned to Haydn not being able to talk when you anxious, and I felt like asking at the moment would be a little inappropriate,” James hesitates, “But like, how does that- work? I don’t know, I like to talk a lot and to me not being  _ able _ to talk sounds like a nightmare but it also doesn’t make sense so like- you can not answer but I’m just interested, yeah?”

“It’s fine, first of all,” Regulus takes a deep breath, looking for the right way to explain it, “It’s like someone switches off your voice. You know what you want to say, you open your mouth to say it, but you can’t make any sound. Sometimes I just don’t want to talk, but sometimes I just can’t.”

“But it’s not all the time?” James asks, Regulus shaking his head. “When?”

“With other people, in places I’m uncomfortable in,” Regulus answers, “The list of people I can consistently talk around is short.”

“Who is on it?” James questions, “Me, right?”

“Mhm, you, most of the time your parents, Sirius, Cynthia, Andy, Narcissa,” Regulus looks at his 7 fingers he’s holding up, “Yeah, that’s it.”

“But you talked to Haydn?” 

“Consistently,” Regulus reminds him.

“Ah, ok yeah, that makes sense,” James nods, “Random side question, but how did you become friends with Cynthia?”

“You just gave me conversational whiplash,” Regulus laughs, “But it was on the train in First Year. She just sat next to me and started talking, she didn’t care that I didn’t respond.”

“Aww, that’s so cute,” James coos, “She’s really nice, although if I didn’t know I wouldn’t think you two would get along.”

Regulus shrugs, “We get along amazing, it’s weird. She’s one of the only people I never get tired of.”

“She almost tackled you the other day,” James points out, “Sirius told me she was leaning on you while you were practicing.  _ I _ don’t get to lean on you.”

“No, you don’t,” Regulus denies, stifling a laugh, “But- I don’t know, it’s weird, the way I feel around her.”

“Talk to me about it,” James urges, “I want to hear it, even if it’s not a coherent thought. I don’t speak in coherent thoughts anyway.”

“I’m going to sound stupid.”

“Go for it,” James maintains, “If it’s sounds stupid so what, you know? I’m here to listen.”

Regulus contemplates where to start a moment, feeling a dull spike of anxiety creep up his spine, which he pushes back down with another sip of his drink. “She bypasses a lot of my boundaries, things I normally can’t stand. I always feel really comfortable around her, even when she’s doing stupid things like hanging on me or asking me a million questions, I’m rarely anxious around her. But then, when I am, it’s like- positive. It’s not a ‘feel like you’re going to vomit’ feeling, it’s more- butterflies, how I’ve heard it described. And it’s never her fault, it’s just things she does sometimes that cause it, I don’t know.”

James stares at him a moment before a smile spreads across his face, “Do you  _ fancy _ her, Reg?”

Regulus hesitates a moment, staring at James in shock. No, he doesn’t, there’s absolutely no way. “No,” He hesitantly replies, not sounding assured of himself at all, “I don’t think so.”

“No, I think you do, that’s what you just described,” James’ smile widens, “It’s not a bad thing! Generally, the feeling of butterflies is associated with romantic feelings rather than platonic ones. Like, Sirius doesn’t get all blushy around me, but he definitely does around Remus. And you got  _ kind of _ blushy around her.”

Regulus shakes his head, but it’s not as a no, James is wrong. It’s because James is  _ way _ too right and Regulus cannot accept that. 

It clicks: He’s so comfortable around her because she  _ isn’t _ just a friend to him. 

“Did I get it right?” James asks, “Yeah, that’s it isn’t it?”

Regulus doesn’t say anything again, still not having fully processed what James just told him. He hates how much sense it makes, he can’t have that much of an attachment to  _ anyone _ . 

“Do you want me to fill that?” James laughs, pointing to Regulus’ mostly empty cup. Regulus vehemently nods, handing over his cup to James. “It’s alright, I get it. But I think you two would be cute together, and she’s pretty.”

“She is very pretty,” Regulus mutters into his topped off cup, eliciting a laugh from James. 

“If you get a girlfriend before me,” James shakes his head, “That’ll be so sad, it’s  _ my _ turn.”

Regulus just rolls his eyes, he doesn’t know what to say anymore. 

“Should we talk about something else?” James proposes, “Did I make that a little bit of a fresh wound?” 

Regulus nods, letting James think of a different conversation topic. “Back to weird kid things, when I was younger my fingernails used to fall off all the time.”

Regulus softly laughs, “So did mine.”

“Oh my God wait, what a weird thing we’re bonding over but that’s so funny,” James marvels, “We’re like fingernail-less twins. Although mine were because I slammed them constantly, or at least that’s what Mum said. I was a really clumsy kid.”

“You’re still clumsy,” Regulus points out.

“Yeah, ok, maybe that’s right,” James laughs, “I’ve never broken a bone, though.”

“I have,” Regulus says, “Several, actually.”

“Which?” James asks, “I know your pinky because it’s bent funny, but what else?”

“My wrist a lot, my arm a couple of times, my foot, most of my fingers,” Regulus lists, “I broke my collarbone once.”

“Your collarbone? How the hell did you do that?” James jumps to correct his question, “Or do I not want to know?”

“That you don’t want to know,” Regulus shakes his head, “It requires background, not a fun story.”

“Are any of them fun stories?” James asks, “There has to be at least one fun story.”

“One of them was you, James,” Regulus reminds him.

“Woah wait, hold on, let me see if I remember it,” James taps a finger on his cup, sitting a moment before shaking his head, “Nope, you have to remind me.”

“When I tried out in my Second Year, you were flying around the pitch being an idiot, and I was waiting for my turn and you slammed right into me,” Regulus retells the story, “You don’t remember that?”

“No ok wait, I think I do,” James nods, “Oh no yeah I do, because I remember not registering who you were until I went back to the dorm and I was telling Sirius about how I crashed Slytherin tryouts to mess around with Emma and that I accidentally sent a kid trying out to the Hospital Wing. He asked me who it was, naturally, and I said I didn’t know it was a kid trying out for Seeker, so  _ he _ asked if this kid looked familiar at all, and me, being an idiot went, yeah, he kind of did. And Sirius went, and I quote, ‘Did it happen to be my  _ fucking _ brother, James?’ to which I went ‘Oh yeah, it definitely was’ and he got mad at me.” 

“Yeah, that was my impression of you,” Regulus stifle a laugh, “Not far off.”

“Hey!” James laughs, lightly elbowing him, “What did you end up breaking, by the way?”

“Just my wrist, it was what I fell on,” Regulus shrugs, “Not that bad, I’ve done worse.”

“How did you end up trying out?” James asks, “Since I accidentally sent you to the Hospital Wing?”

“We were almost done anyway, they just let me on,” Regulus answers.

“Good choice on them, you’re a good fucking Seeker, Reg,” James comments, “Giving me a run for my money.”

Regulus just shrugs, looking up at the sky, which has cleared up significantly since they came out here. The stars show brightly against the nearly black sky, the moon likely just having reached its first quarter. It’s almost beautiful enough to quell the prickle of anxiety tonight’s Cynthia conversation gifted him with.

“Reg,” James starts, causing Regulus to look back over at him, “Are you going to tell her?”

“Hm?” 

“Are you going to tell Cynthia?” He clarifies, “You know, now that you’ve realized.”

Regulus looks back towards the sky and shakes his head, “No.”

“Why?” James presses, “What if she feels the same?”

Regulus raises him, “What if she doesn’t?”

“I mean, so what? What’s the worst that happens, things are awkward for a little?” James proposes, “You guys are like best friends, that’ll fix itself. Spend some time with some other people, come back to it when you’ve sorted through it, and you’ll probably feel better about it too.” 

Regulus sighs before looking over at James, “James, I don’t have anyone else, it’s just her.”

“You have me,” James suggests.

“My brother’s best friend.”

“No- well, I  _ am _ that, but I’m your friend apart from that,” James says, “I like you separate from him. I hang out with you on my own accord. Like right now, I’m doing this because I enjoy talking to you, if you need someone to hang out with, don’t take me off the table just because I met you through Sirius.”

Regulus just nods, gazing off towards the ground. James has such a way of making him feel comfortable, and Regulus will never understand it.

Out of the corner of his eye, he sees James’ face light up, “Can I please have a hug?”

Regulus jokingly sighs but sets his cup down, leaning over to give James a hug. He can practically feel James’ excitement, apparently, a hug means a lot to him. 

“Mmm, I love Reg hugs,” James sits back, “They make me feel special like I’m apart of an exclusive club.”

“I don’t hug many people,” Regulus lets out a small laugh, “Consider it an honor.”

“That I do,” James boasts, laughing before laying down and pointing up, “Tell me about some of these stars, they look nice.”

“Canis Major is right there,” Regulus points, “The bright one is Sirius.”

James nods along, “It’s a dog, right? Like this,” James draws the constellation with his finger.

“Mhm,” Regulus nods.

“What else is there?” James looks around before pointing, “What’s that?”

Regulus lays down to get a better look at what he’s pointing at, “Gemini.”

“Tell me about that one,” James encourages, “It’s an astrology sign, right? Do you know about astrology or just astronomy? Is there a difference?”

“Yes, there is, a big one,” Regulus laughs, “But I know about both.”

“Oh, good!” James smiles, “What does being a Gemini mean?”

“So, the Gemini symbol is twins, which generally tends to represent the ‘faces’ of Gemini’s…”


	63. Sleep it Off

Regulus wakes up to a quite loud knock on his door, paired with its opening and James’ voice calling, “Good morning Reg!”

Regulus sits up and looks over at James, who is smiling like an idiot in the doorway. Regulus’ head is pounding, and yesterday’s anxiety is really biting him right now. But, at least he slept well.

“You look like you slept well,” James laughs, gesturing for him to follow, “Come on, breakfast is ready.”

Regulus gets out of bed and follows after James, straightening out his hair a little. It’s not absolutely unruly, but it’s definitely more than it normally is. Sirius is already downstairs, eyeing Regulus as he takes his seat.

“Good morning,” Sirius stares at him knowingly, “Have fun last night?”

“The most,” Regulus quips back, looking up as James takes a seat.

“So Reg,” James leans forward on the table, “How are you _feeling_?”

“What the hell did you two talk about last night?” Sirius questions, confused, looking between the two of them.

“Nothing,” Regulus shuts the conversation down, “It’s nothing.”

“Come _on_ ,” James presses, “But it’s so fun!”

“No,” Regulus shakes his head, “We’re done, talk about something else.”

James’ face twists into confusion, just barely hinted with concern. Regulus doesn’t want to even indirectly address what happened last night, even the thought of it makes him sick to his stomach. No one gets to ask anything before Mrs. Potter sets down the final plate and sits down, Mr. Potter notably missing.

“Where’s Dad?” James asks his mother, pointing at the empty seat.

“I am not quite sure,” Mrs. Potter answers, “He left me a note saying that he had to do something early this morning, I’m not sure what.”

“Oh, alright,” James shrugs, going to make himself his plate. Regulus and Sirius follow suit, Regulus taking considerably smaller portions than he normally does. Both the pounding behind his skull and his anxiety sitting in his stomach he’s really not hungry, as bad for him as that is.

“How late were you two up there last night?” Sirius asks, taking a bite of his breakfast.

James opens his mouth to answer, but Mrs. Potter cuts him off, “Not with your mouth full, James.”

James finishes chewing before he speaks this time. “Kind of late, we went in around 1 or so, right, Reg?”

“Mhm,” Regulus nods.

“You guys went out at like 11, you were out there forever,” Sirius comments, “Is Reg really _that_ interesting?”

“Don’t badmouth your brother,” Mrs. Potter idly scolds, seemingly out of instinct. 

“And Reg is very interesting, we had a great time,” James answers, “I know tons of astrology information now.”

“I will never get your obsession with that, Reg,” Sirius shakes his head, “You would talk my ear off about it and I would not understand a thing you were saying.”

“I kind of got it,” James says, “Although, Reg, you lost me at the planets. I tried my best but God what were you saying.”

“Sirius, you don’t listen,” Regulus counters, Sirius shrugging.

“Fair assessment, no I don’t,” He laughs, “Hey, at least I’m honest.”

“You’re so mean, Sirius,” James nudges him, both of them looking up when an owl flies in the window. Mrs. Potter gets up to grab the letter, looking at who it’s addressed to before handing it to Sirius.

“Oh, thank you,” He says, looking at it a moment, “I’m guessing this is probably Remus, I wrote him yesterday. I’m surprised he responded so quickly.”

“I can’t believe he got sick, and a week before the full, that just sucks,” James sighs, “That’s his luck though.”

“Yeah, Remus has horrible luck,” Sirius puts the letter down next to his plate, “And we’re not there, so that also sucks.”

“You know, Remus is welcome to spend breaks with us,” Mrs. Potter chimes in, “If he wants to spend Easter break here he’s welcome to.”

“I’ll ask him when we get closer to it,” James replies.

Sirius shakes his head, “No, you won’t, you’ll forget in a week and never ask.”

“Ok, look,” James laughs, “Maybe I will.”

“I’ll remind you,” Mrs. Potter tells him, “Because I know you will not remember.”

“See? I just get someone else to remember for me,” James points out, Mrs. Potter rolling her eyes. Regulus wants to join in the conversation but after what felt like nonstop social interaction for two days his social battery is completely dead. Not only that but he doesn’t feel well at all, so he’s too busy watching the room spin to think of a comment to add. 

They carry on about something or other, the conversation floating from Remus to Peter to school to God knows what else. Eventually, James runs out of topics and Mrs. Potter gets up from the table.

“Are you all done, boys?” She asks, all of them nodding, “You’re all excused then, don’t light any fires.”

“We’ll try not to!” James answers, all three of them getting up and heading upstairs. Regulus breaks off into his room, minimizing the light in the room to just a candle across the room. He lays down flat on his back, staring up at the seemingly perpetually moving ceiling. Anxiety _and_ a hangover? What a perfect combination. 

Regulus only gets about 10 minutes of dark silence before the light from the hallway comes flooding into the room, James’ voice following it.

“Hey, Reg,” He greets, walking in without shutting the door, “Are you alright?”

“Yeah,” Regulus answers, sitting up and holding an arm up to the door in hopes to block the light. 

“What’re you- Oh,” James walks back and shuts the door before grabbing a seat on Regulus’ bed.

“Thank you,” Regulus puts his arm down, looking at a much perkier James. He does not know how he’s so awake.

“So, how are you feeling?” James asks.

Regulus just shrugs, but James gets the point.

“Not great?” He questions, “Just a hangover or…?”

“Some of that,” Regulus answers, “You seem fine.”

James nods, “You had about double what I had.”

“Fair,” Regulus concedes, waiting for James to ask what he actually came in here to ask.

“Oh! What did I come in here for?” James puzzles to himself, “Oh yeah, what I came in here for. Sirius also got a letter from Andromeda, and she asked if you would be up to visit on Saturday before we go back? She said she wanted to see you both at the same time.”

Regulus shrugs, “I don’t care.”

“Cool! I’ll tell Sirius,” James looks at him a moment, “You’re rubbing your head, do you have a headache? Do you want something for that?”

“It’s fine,” Regulus brushes him off, but James doesn’t listen.

“I’ll grab you it,” He gets up, “Do you know how much Mum normally gives you?” 

Regulus shakes his head, he’s never been paying enough attention.

“I’ll just ask,” He says, not giving Regulus enough time for him to protest before shutting the door and heading downstairs. Although, he’s silently relieved, because his head is really pounding.

Instead of James, though, Mrs. Potter comes in, careful not to throw the door open as James did. 

“Hello, dear,” She greets, handing him the cup, “I don’t trust James not to not overdose you on a painkiller. This is the right dosage.”

“Thank you,” He answers, downing the medicine as fast as possible. It’s just as disgusting as it always is, but he knows it’ll help him. She takes the cup back from him and takes a seat on the bed, putting the back of her hand on his forehead. 

“You don’t feel hot at all, but you look a little sick,” She puzzles, “Are you feeling alright? Just the headache?” 

“Mhm,” He lies, “Just that.”

“Hmm, I feel like there’s something else going on but I won’t press,” She gets up, “Do you need anything, dear?”

He shakes his head, “No, thank you.”

“Of course dear, let me know if you need anything,” She smiles before shutting the door. He seems to be popular today, because the door opens yet again, this time Sirius walking in. He walks in and puts a full glass of water on the night table next to him. 

“Drink that,” Sirius points at it, “The worst thing you can be is dehydrated, and God knows you are.”

“Thanks,” Regulus shoots back, both appreciative and annoyed.

“Just trying to keep you alive,” Sirius comments before walking out of the room, the door quietly clicking shut behind him. Regulus grabs the cup next to him and intends to only take a sip, but ends up drinking almost half of it. He puts it down and pulls a blanket over himself, deciding it’s best to probably sleep it off.

Well, if he ever falls asleep that is.

***

“Where’d you go?” James asks, looking up from his bed at Sirius walking in the room, “Reg’s room again?”

“Yeah, just to check if he’s asleep,” Sirius answers, jumping onto the bed across from James, “He is.”

James nods, “He didn’t look too hot this morning.”

“How much did you _give_ him?” Sirius questions.

“I didn’t _give him_ anything, he’s like, his own person Sirius,” James points out, “And he had a decent amount. He’s no lightweight, I’ll tell you that.”

“No one in our family is, thank God, the only good gene I’ve ever been passed,” Sirius laughs, “Also, what the hell did you two talk about?”

“Eh, a little bit of everything, although,” Jame clamps a hand over his mouth, “No, no, I’m not telling you that.”

“Not telling me what?” Sirius presses, “What are you keeping from me?”

“Something Reg asked me not to talk about.”

“But you’re a horrible secret keeper,” Sirius finishes, “So you’re going to tell me.”

“Uh, well, it has to do with Cynthia-”

“He fucking likes her, doesn’t he?” Sirius interrupts him, “How did you get that out of him?”

“First of all, holy shit, calm down,” James laughs, “Second of all, I didn’t even think about it when I said it, but he was talking to me about his relationship with her and he was using like, the kind of language you would use about Remus, and so I just _asked_ because I was _interested_ and all the sudden I watched it click.”

“ _You_ caused it?”

“Well, I think I caused the connection,” James justifies, “He already felt like that, he would have figured it out eventually.”

“No, he _wouldn’t have_ ,” Sirius argues, “He is never going to talk to her again.”

“What?” James asks, extremely confused on how that correlates.

“I mean, don’t get me wrong, helping him figure it out and talk through it is good, he needs that,” Sirius prefaces before sighing, “But he’s not going to be able to _be_ around her, it took him a year to stomach the fact that he cared about her in the first place.”

“What?” James asks again, not any less confused, “You’re not making sense right now.”

“They met when they were in First Year, right? All of his Second Year he barely talked to her, summer came and I asked him why he was avoiding Cynthia like the plague, and he explained to me the feeling of _comfort_ like it was poison,” Sirius explains, “Now that he knows _this_? Forget it, it’s going to take him a year.”

“Oh shit, well,” James hesitates, “Yeah, good for me!”

“It’s also probably part of why he crashed so hard, he’s anxious,” Sirius falls back on the bed, “ _Why_ is he so high maintenance?”

“He’s not, you just care about him a lot,” James jabs, Sirius playfully kicking him, “What? You do! You _could_ just let him figure it out but instead, you’re going to worry about him. That’s caring.”

“It’s an obligation.”

“It’s not an obligation,” James laughs, “You just care.”

“I’m ignoring that,” Sirius sits back up, “Did you talk about anything else?”

“We talked about childhood stories, we tried to keep it lighthearted,” James says, “Although, I never knew how like, fragile Reg was as a kid. That was a surprise.”

“Did he tell you how he was always sick?” Sirius asks, and James nods. “Yeah, terrified the shit out of me. I’m _not_ a healer, and our mother certainly didn’t care. Did he tell you how he almost went fucking _blind_ once?”

“Yeah, uh, what the hell? How does that even happen?”

“Well, he got it from something in the house after one of those stupid parties, He was like 7, I was 9, so neither of us knew how to fix it,” Sirius tells him, “Our mother insisted it was nothing and his eye was just irritated until he physically couldn’t open it anymore.”

“Ooo, not good,” James cringes, “Only one eye?”

“Mhm, I would yell at him if he touched it to wash his hands so he wouldn’t either give it to me or to his other eye, it worked though,” Sirius sighs, “Of course, _eventually_ our mother treated it because she can’t bring a kid with one eye to a family event. But then he kept telling me he couldn’t read right and things were blurry out of that eye, and so I’m pretty sure he has permanent damage. Did he tell you all that?”

“He told me that he couldn’t see out of it, yeah,” James pauses a second, “None of this shit happened to you?”

“I mean, I didn’t get sick often, but I had my fair share of other issues,” Sirius leans back on his hands, “We’re not unraveling that mess unless you get _me_ drunk, this isn’t fair.”

“I’ll keep it in mind,” James laughs, “Did you write Moony back? Or did I make that up in my head?”

“Yeah, I wrote him back,” Sirius nods, “He said he can’t wait to see us, because he really isn’t feeling good. A little concerning to me, but I think he just got normally sick and it’s going to overlap.”

“It’s uh, it’s the special moon isn’t it?” James snaps his fingers, “Damnit, what’s it called?”

“Wolf moon,” Sirius reminds him, “Mhm, Moony said it’s already giving him shit, that one always makes him indescribably emotional.”

“Right right right,” James nods, “Aww I miss him, I hope he’s doing ok. Has Lily been with him?”

“Yeah, he said Lily has been spending pretty much all her time with him, mainly because neither of them has anyone else who stayed.”

“We have to invite him next time, you have to remember for me,” James says, “You will, right?”

“Yes, I will,” Sirius nods, “I want him over here as much as you do. Are you ever going to deal those cards?”

“Oh!” James finishes shuffling the cards in his hands before he deals them to the two of them. 

“Are you ready to get absolutely crushed?” Sirius challenges. 

James laughs, “Nope, good thing I won’t.”


	64. Not Quite as Planned

  1. Regulus scans the doors for Narcissa’s flat, number 510. He finds it at the other end of the hallway, taking a deep breath before knocking on the door. It opens almost immediately, Narcissa smiling at him.



“Hello!” She happily greets, drawing him into a hug, “I haven’t seen you in a while.”

“Yeah, it’s been a while,” He steps back, “Too long.”

“Agreed,” She sighs, stepping back, “Come in, come in.”

Regulus walks into her flat, which is a decent size. It’s not huge, but it’s definitely bigger than most people’s first apartments are. There are spiral stairs up to another room, likely a bedroom considering most of the main floor is the same room. Ok, maybe it’s a really nice flat.

“Your flat is nice,” Regulus comments, looking back as she shuts the door, hanging his coat on the rack by the door that she points to.

“Right? Lucius and I didn’t want somewhere too big yet,” She gestures for him to follow her, both of them taking a seat on the couch, “My dad was so confused as to how we’re going to live here, he said it was practically a shoebox, even though it’s genuinely quite large.”

Regulus looks at her hand, resting on her knee, pointing at the new ring, “Can I see?”

“Oh yes,” She holds her hand out, Regulus looking at the new, white gold ring just below her rose gold engagement ring. It’s lined with small stones, of which Regulus is sure they’re nothing but the best the jeweler offered. 

“It’s beautiful,” He looks up, “It goes well with your engagement ring.”

“Right? I thought the same thing,” She holds her hand up so she can look at it, “Lucius picked mine and I picked his, we decided to keep with tradition. All I asked is that it’s not normal gold, I don’t want an entirely gold ring, it wouldn’t go well with the other one. So we decided on white gold collectively.”

Regulus nods, “I like the white gold, I think it was a good choice. What dress did you pick? You sent me options but never told me what you decided on.”

“Oh, hold on,” She gets up and goes off into the other room, coming back with a framed photo, handing it to him, “I ended up picking the one you liked.”

He looks at the photo, the two of them standing in a clear patch outside, surrounded by fresh snow. Lucius is standing just behind her, his hands placed delicately on her waist. The bouquet in her hands is made up of completely white flowers. Narcissa’s dress is laid perfectly around her, the sheer fabric on the sleeves extending up to cover her collarbone. It’s very simple, but still absolutely gorgeous. Her hair is up in some intricate manner that Regulus couldn’t even begin to understand. The entire scene is perfect, their smiles lighting up the entire photo.

He smiles up at her, “You look beautiful, that was a good choice.”

“Thank you,” She takes back the photo and sets it on the coffee table, “My mum agreed with you, Aunt Walburga did not. Just another reason to go with that dress.”

“Of course,” He laughs, “Where is Lucius?”

“Um, I’m not quite sure,” She gets up, “Actually, come with me, I’ll make tea. Maybe treat you a little bit like a house guest.”

Regulus follows after her into their kitchen, taking a seat in the chair she points to. She looks at the calendar on the wall, “It just says Ministry, so whatever it is I’m assuming it is important. He said he won’t be back for a while, so you likely won’t see him.”

Regulus nods in response, watching her walk over and set the kettle on the stove before taking a seat across from him.

“So, how have you been? Anything new?” She asks, resting her forearms on the table.

“Not really,” Regulus answers, “Nothing I haven’t told you, I don’t think.”

“Are you doing anything else before you go back?” She questions.

He nods, “I’m seeing Andy this weekend.”

“Mhm, that’s good, how is her daughter doing?” 

“Good, I saw her the other day,” Regulus stifles a laugh, “She talked to me about Hogwarts houses, she used the word ‘colors’ but it’s the same concept. She said she liked yellow the most, even though I had put my tie on her.”

“Aww, that’s so sweet,” Narcissa coos, studying him a moment, “Where’d you get that scratch from?”

He puts a hand on the almost completely healed cut from Christmas Eve, “Oh, one of the kids in James’ family. They were recklessly swinging a piece of glass, it got me, it’s fine.”

“Yeah, Lethia has told me horrors of all those kids,” She laughs, “Although, she said the one that is around your age is very well-behaved.”

“Haydn, mhm,” Regulus nods, “His mother was a Carrow, he came over the other day complaining about how she’s been on top of him, sounded like the way we grew up.”

“Oh, what’s her name? I know who she is,” Narcissa holds a finger up, looking up a moment before remembering, “Fiona, Fiona Carrow was the one who married a Fawley.”

“How do you know that?” He asks. 

“I remember her from when we were kids,” Narcissa answers, “I was probably around 8? No, I was definitely 8, because I remember hearing what had happened while I was watching you and telling you to shh because I was listening, but you kept telling me that Sirius had turned 4.”

He laughs, “Well, I wanted you to know.”

“And it worked because I remember it and I’m 21.”

“Good,” He smiles, looking back as the kettle whistles on the stove. She gets up and takes it off, pouring two cups and setting the teabags in them before setting them on the table. 

“Well, what else is there to talk about?” She asks, and he shrugs. “How about going back? How are you feeling?”

“We don’t want to talk about that,” He stops her. 

“No, I think we should,” She looks at him with concern, “What’s bothering you?”

“Nothing, I’d just rather be home, like I told you before,” He lies, although she sees right through it.

She raises an eyebrow, leaning forward, “I don’t think that’s the reason, Reg.”

“Whatever the reason is, I just don’t want to go back,” He brushes her off again.

“Tell me,” She softly presses, not having to clarify. 

“Just- This summer didn’t go over well with- some people, I’ll leave it at that,” He says, his voice shaky. He doesn’t want to talk about this. He  _ really _ doesn’t want to talk about this.

“No, I don’t think you will,” She shakes her head, “Keep going.”

He glances down at the cup of tea in front of him, which no longer looks appealing. “It’s nothing, Narcissa.”

“Who?” She asks, “Who is it?”

“Hm?”

“Who is giving you a hard time?” She asks again.

He shakes his head, his voice small, “No one.”

“Reg,” She sighs, “Have some tea first, then we’ll go into the living room and talk about it, alright?”

He nods, although he both doesn’t want to talk about it and doesn’t think he can drink this in front of him. He fiddles with the string on the teabag, but can’t force himself to actually pick the cup up and drink any of it. Narcissa seems to catch on, though.

“Actually, how about you bring that with you?” She offers, standing up and picking up her own cup. Regulus listens, doing the same and following her back into the living room area, placing his cup on the tea table with no intention of touching it again.

“So, tell me what’s going on at school,” She says, “And don’t give me that face.”

“I’m not giving you a face,” He weakly protests, although he knows he is.

“You’re looking at me like I’m asking something horrid,” She stifles a laugh, “But really, start with who. Just names.”

He sighs, “Evan Rosier, Ben Flint, Amais Avery, all of them.”

“Avery is older than you are, right?” Narcissa asks, “He’s in Sirius’ year.”

“Mhm,” Regulus nods, “It’s him, Snape, and Mulciber.”

“What do they do?” 

“Stupid teasing, it’s nothing,” He counters, “About this summer. About me.”

“Ok, what about Rosier and Flint?” She prompts, “Do they do anything else?”

“I mean,” He falters a moment, but that’s enough for Narcissa to catch on.

“What are they doing?” She pushes, “I know it’s more.”

“You know who they are,” He answers, crossing his arms, “You know.”

“Then I know they’ve been hexing you,” She sighs, “What kind?”

Regulus mindlessly rubs his scarred shoulder, “Nothing.”

“Not nothing, what happened to that shoulder?” She points, “Why are you rubbing it?”

“Just- mindless,” He puts his arm down, “Yeah, mindless.”

“Show me your shoulder then,” She sits up straighter, “And again, don’t look at me like that. We’re related, I watched you get about 70% of the other scars you have.”

He sighs and pulls the neck of his shirt down, which just happens to be a looser sweater today. He shows her the scar from the stinging hex, and she gasps.

“Holy sh-” She mutters, “Who the hell gave you that?”

“Calm down, Narcissa,” He pulls it back up, “It doesn’t matter.”

“Yes, it does,” She presses, “Not to bring this up, but I believe you have a similar scar from your  _ mother _ , Reg.”

“It’s nothing,” He shoots back, “We don’t have to talk about it.”

“Yes, we do-”

He shakes his head, “No.”

“ _ No one _ should be hurting you, ever, no questions asked,” She firmly states, “The fact that someone left a  _ mark _ on you is beyond unacceptable, Reg. I want to know what’s happening because I know this is weighing on you.”

He just stares at her a moment, not being able to muster up the words to say anything. His gaze falls into his lap, watching his hand nervously fidget with his pant leg.

“Start with something, anything,” She urges, leaning back, “It doesn’t have to be in order.”

He takes a deep breath and starts explaining, slowly, absolutely everything to her. Everything Evan has hexed him with, all the comments and shoulder slams from Ben, the relentless teasing from Avery and Mulciber, the payback for Sirius’ things he gets from Snape. All of it. At some point, he starts to cry, having been biting back tears the entire time. Narcissa never interrupts, never stops listening, and never stops calmly rubbing his knee. 

By the time he finishes his breath keeps getting caught in his throat, his sentence tapering off into nothing but tears and hitching breaths.

“Come here, Reg,” She pulls him into a hug, lightly rubbing his back as they rock back and forth. She doesn’t say anything, save for a couple of reassuring words. He’s missed her so much.

Eventually, he sits back, wiping his eyes with his sleeve, “I’m sorry.”

“No no, you’re completely alright,” She assures him, “I feel like you needed that.”

He nods, “Yeah, I think I did.”

“I’m glad I could help,” She smiles, “I’m always-”

She’s cut off by her doorbell ringing, followed by several violent knocks on the door. She curses to herself before getting up and gesturing for Regulus to follow her.

“That’s Bella, I don’t know what she wants but she won’t leave until I talk to her,” She sighs, guiding him with a hand on his shoulder into the kitchen, “It won’t be more than a couple of minutes, I’ll tell her I’m busy and she’ll go away.”

He nods, taking a seat at the table, still stunned. He’s absolutely still making a ton of noise, but he wouldn’t be his mother’s kid if he didn’t know how to be dead silent. He cups a hand over his mouth, instead of taking slow breaths he stops breathing altogether. The last thing he wants is for Bellatrix to hear him.

The door opens, Narcissa saying something first, “Bella, I’m busy, you can’t do this in writing?”

“Nope, Auntie wanted me to talk to you in person,” She says and Regulus immediately freezes. The voice in his head reminding him to breathe, he’s safe, gets drowned out and he clasps his fist tighter in the hand not over his mouth.

“What does she need? Why can’t she write me?” Narcissa complains, “How urgent is this?”

“Well, in real terms, not really, in Auntie’s terms, very,” Bellatrix answers, “So- Wait, why do I know whose coat that is?”

Regulus digs his nails into the palm of his hand in an effort not to panic, if she knows he’s here  _ so many  _ things could happen. None of them are good, and he really doesn’t want to see his mother.

“Hm? What are you talking about?” Narcissa questions, pretending very well to be completely oblivious. 

“That’s Regulus’ coat, why is that here?” She asks, “Is he here?” 

Regulus watches blood drip from his hand as his panicked grip gets tighter. He cups a hand under his other one to not get blood anywhere, now having no outlet for his building anxiety. 

“Oh, this?” She questions, “I haven’t had the chance to get rid of it since he visited when we first moved in, why?”

“Just looks a little suspicious to me.”

“Even though I just told you why it’s there?” She shoots back, “Suspicious by nature, aren’t you Bella?”

“You’ve nailed it,” She laughs, Regulus relaxing just the slightest bit, “Anyway, speaking of the boys, Auntie wanted to know if they came home for break.”

“Why would I know that?” She asks in return, “I know nothing of them.”

“She said she wanted to pay them a little Christmas visit, maybe send a gift,” She laughs in that distinct, malicious Bellatrix cackle.

Regulus’ blood goes completely cold. He stops breathing, physically clawing at his throat to  _ open _ . He bites back a sob because this wasn’t the afternoon he wanted. Not in the slightest. 

“Well, I have no clue if they’re home or not,” Narcissa responds flatly, “I don’t know why she thought I would.”

“She asked me to ask, so I obey,” Bellatrix remarks, “Even I know not to fuck with Aunt Walburga, I just do what she wants.” 

“Is that it?” Narcissa presses, “Again, I’m busy today.”

“Kicking me out so soon?” She playfully challenges, “Yes, it is, I’ll see you this weekend Cissy.”

“Have a good day, Bella,” Narcissa bids goodbye before shutting the door and immediately walking into the kitchen. “Reg. Hey Reg.”

Regulus looks over at her, panicked and shaking. 

“Shit,” She curses, pulling a chair so she’s sitting right next to him, “You’re safe, ok, we’re just going to breathe.”

He nods, letting her softly coach him into at least breathing. He’s barely calmed down, though, his head still swimming with  _ all  _ the things that could mean.

“I promise you she’s not going to do anything,” Narcissa assures him, “She bluffs, you know that I’m sure. And even if she does, you know there are so many people protecting you, ok?” 

He takes a shaky breath and shakes his head, squeezing his eyes shut. His mother doesn’t bluff, and he knows she’s just trying to help but it’s  _ not _ working. He feels constant tears rolling down his cheeks, and he feels absolutely  _ disgusting _ . 

“Can I see your hand?” She asks, pointing at the stinging hand he has clamped closed. He opens it, seeing three small, bleeding cuts. Narcissa gets up and grabs a tissue, handing it to him, “Press that on there, we’ll figure that out in a minute.”

He listens to her, covering them with the tissue and looking for what she seemingly wants to do next.

“Would you feel safer somewhere else?” She asks, “I don't want Bella to be the end of our afternoon, but if you’re uncomfortable I care about that more.”

He nods. 

“Do you want to go back to the Potter’s?” She prompts, he nods. “It’s probably better, I’ll leave a note for Lucius.”

She gets up and grabs a piece of paper, scribbling something and placing it on the table. She extends a hand to him, which he takes, letting her guide him into the other room. He takes his coat and puts it on, following her out into the hallway. He keeps his head down, and she keeps a hand on his shoulder. 

They go outside and she taps him with one finger, “Close your eyes.”

He closes his eyes, feeling the world whirl around him. He waits until he feels steady on his feet before opening his eyes and looking back up. 

He lets out a breath. He’s home. 


	65. Bee Sanctuary

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> chapter dump is over, this is all i have stocked lol. i write a chapter every couple of days because i have an addiction to this story, so i'll post them as i go!

“James! Can you get the door?” A voice from inside the house yells, an inaudible voice yelling back, seemingly out of protest. The door opens a second later, Mrs. Potter standing on the other side, a towel draped over her shoulder.

“Hello, uh, things didn’t quite go as planned,” Narcissa forces a nervous laugh looking over at Regulus, who is still a mess. “I also think maybe you should know about it.”

“Goodness, here, come in,” She steps back, letting them both walk into the house. Regulus takes his shoes off, avoiding the look he knows he’s getting from Mrs. Potter. 

“Who’s here?” James asks, coming barreling down the stairs, “Woah, you guys are fast.”

“Go back upstairs, James,” Mrs. Potter waves him off, James not moving at first. “I mean it, upstairs.”

“Sorry, sorry,” James runs back upstairs, loudly shutting the door to his and Sirius’ room. 

“Here, come sit, tell me what happened,” She gestures for them to follow, all three of them taking a seat at the table. Regulus is practically folded in on himself next to Narcissa. He keeps glancing at the door, he feels far too exposed. He just wants her to explain what happened so he can hole himself up in the piano room for a while. 

“So, my sister paid me an unexpected visit, asking me if the boys had come home for the holidays,” She sighs, “I pretended I didn’t know, but she informed me it was in the interests of my Aunt, their mother, to ‘pay a visit’. I feel as if that’s important for you to know.”

“Yes,” She nods, processing that for a moment. “Well, that’s certainly not your ideal scenario,” She taps the table in front of Regulus, “Are you alright, dear?”

He nods, although she easily deduces that’s a lie. He’s practically shaking just sitting there, and the constant glances around the room certainly don’t give off ‘alright’ energy.

“Well, we’re not busy here, if you’d like to stay, Narcissa,” Mrs. Potter says, “Since you two didn’t plan to get interrupted.”

“Reg,” Narcissa calls his attention over, “Have you worked on any new pieces you can show me?”

Regulus nods, “Mhm.”

“Perfect, that’s better than sitting stuffed up in my flat anyway,” She gets up, gesturing forward, “Lead the way.”

“I’ll be out here if either of you needs anything,” Mrs. Potter assures them, Regulus nodding before heading into the piano room. He makes sure Narcissa shuts the door. He can’t bear to have that door open right now.

He sits at the piano, Narcissa taking a seat next to him. He flips his book with one hand, playing a mindless warm up with the other. He switches hands halfway through, his playing inevitably suffering due to how shaken he is.

“Is this a new book?” She asks, pointing at it. He nods, letting her squint at it a moment, lightly tapping a couple of the notes. “Lord, this is hard music, Reg. And allegro, my God.”

He shakes his hands out a moment before playing through what he knows. It’s the new piece James has been relentlessly invested in. Naturally, it is practically the musical version of James, with insanely fast runs in ever changing intervals. None of it makes sense, but it sounds good as a whole. 

“How many hours have you put into this?” She asks in slight disbelief.

“Too many,” He answers, “James likes this piece.”

“He strikes me as the type who asks about it all the time,” She laughs, “It’s definitely fun, I would certainly have no idea where to start.”

He suppresses a laugh, pointing at the beginning of the piece, causing her to roll her eyes.

“Ok, ok, always so smart,” She laughs, “Show me what else you’ve been working on, I know it’s more than just that.”

Regulus flips to another piece, playing through that one too. Narcissa just happily listens as he cards through a few more, helping him pick out problem spots that sound just a little off. He tries to ignore the constant pit of anxiety in his stomach, trying to just enjoy Narcissa’s company.

He fails.

***

Regulus trails behind Sirius up to Andromeda’s door. He’s felt horrible since Thursday, and he contemplated not going at all when he was inevitably up at abysmal hours of the night last night. But he wants to see her again before he goes back, and hopefully, it’ll help ease his anxiety a little more _not_ being somewhere his mother can find him. 

Sirius knocks, Regulus hearing a small, high-pitched voice yell, “I get it I get it!” 

The door swings open, a beaming Nymphadora standing on the other side.

“Hi! You’re here!” She cheers, running up to hug Sirius.

“Hi Dora,” He laughs, letting her go as she goes over to hug Regulus. He only rubs her head, not able to feed off of her excitement in the slightest. This is going to be a long afternoon.

“Dora, did you-” Andromeda walks out from down the hallway, “Dora.”

“What?” She looks back, “I got it.”

“No, you know not to open the door,” Andromeda scolds, “Come up here, let them come inside.”

Nymphadora pouts, defiantly going back up the stairs to stand by her mother. Regulus shuts the door behind him, following Sirius up the stairs. 

“Sorry about that, she’s a little excited,” Andromeda laughs, looking down at her still pouting daughter, “Well, I’ve killed the mood, but that’s alright. I’m just happy it was you at the door.”

“Yeah, that could have been bad,” Sirius agrees.

“Come in, come sit,” She gestures into the living room, both of them going in and grabbing a seat. She walks in and grabs a seat on the other side of the sectional, practically right next to Sirius, “It’s good to see you both, you know, together.”

“I guess now you know we’re not the same person,” Sirius laughs.

“Oh, did I already know that,” She jokingly deadpans, looking at Regulus, “Hi, Reg.”

Regulus waves back in response, Andromeda furrowing her brow at him. 

“Are you alright?” She asks.

He nods, “Mhm.”

“I don’t believe you, but we’ll revisit that at some point,” She sits back, “Anything new?”

“Not really, not that I can think of,” Sirius shakes his head, looking back at someone walks down the hallway. Regulus looks back too, seeing Ted walk into the room with Nymphadora wrapped around his neck. He grabs a seat next to Andromeda.

“Is she mad at me?” Andromeda asks, and Ted nods.

“Mhm, how dare you discipline her for opening our front door,” He jokes, “I don’t think she slept much last night, did you, Dora?”

“Mm-mm,” She shakes her head, sitting back, “Not tired.”

“Not even a little?” Her dad prompts.

“No no,” She gets down and walks over to Regulus, climbing up into his lap and leaning against him, “I like it here.”

“Ok, you can be with Regulus, I’m not offended,” Ted laughs, “Anyway, how are you boys doing?”

“Good, same as always,” Sirius replies, “Break flew by, though, I can’t believe we’re already going back.”

“Yeah, and I didn't really get to see Reg at all,” She points out, “I think Dora saw him more than I did.”

“She did,” Regulus answers, rubbing her arm, which he’s holding so she doesn’t fall.

“What did you do over break, Reg?” Andromeda asks, “I heard all about Sirius’ the other day, I feel like I need to know how yours has been.”

Regulus shrugs, “Nothing really.”

“Other than having Cynthia over and drinking a quarter of that bottle the other day?” Sirius challenges, nudging him.

“So nothing really,” Regulus maintains, looking back to Andromeda, “Nothing.”

She looks at him skeptically, going to say something but getting cut off by Nymphadora, “No no, you saw me.”

“Mhm, I did,” He replies, looking down at her sleepily smiling face.

“That’s fun,” She reaches up and pinches his nose, “Right?” 

He nods, taking her hand away just for her to put it back. She giggles, apparently finding it very funny. He does it lightly back to her, which she finds absolutely hysterical.

“No no!” She laughs, “I sound funny!” 

She pushes his hand off with both of hers, getting up and making her way over to Sirius.

“Tell you a secret,” She gestures for him to lean down, which he does to the best of his ability. She whispers something into his ear, and he nods. 

“Is that right?” He dramatically asks, “Wow.”

“Yeah!” She excitedly nods.

“What’re you telling him?” Andromeda asks, leaning over to see her.

“Nothing,” She answers slowly, fighting off giggles. 

Andromeda sighs and shakes her head, “Are you telling my secrets?” 

“Nooo,” She denies, “Not telling.”

“I think you are,” She smiles, “You’re not?”

“Never!” 

“Alright,” Andromeda concedes, “I believe you.” She looks at Regulus, shielding her mouth with her hand before mouthing ‘She’s lying.’

“Hey Dora,” Ted leans forward, “Why don’t you show Sirius what you got yesterday?”

“Ok!” She gets up and grabs his hand, pulling him up from the couch. She extends a hand to Regulus, but Andromeda steps in before he can take it.

“Reg is going to stay out here for a little bit, he’ll come in after,” She says, Nymphadora taking that as excuse enough and pulling Sirius off into the other room. Andromeda pats the spot Sirius was sitting in, Ted getting up.

“Do you want me to make some tea?” He asks, Andromeda nodding. 

“Thank you, Ted,” She smiles back as he heads into the kitchen. She rubs Regulus’ knee, “What’s up? You’re a little quiet today.”

Regulus shrugs, “Just feeling quiet.”

“Ok, try again,” She urges, “I know that’s not it.”

“Bad few days,” He sighs, “It’s nothing.”

“I don’t think it is,” She continues to press.

He crosses his arms, more protective than anything, “Just a few things, general things.”

She nods, leaning back against the back of the couch, “Do you want to talk about any of it? I’m all ears.”

“I’m despising going back,” He shrugs, “That’s the main problem.”

“Other people?”

He nods. 

“Yeah, I get that,” She nods for a moment, “Just stick with who you have, and don’t be afraid to throw around some of those Bella curses. Those will keep anyone away from you.”

“I probably won’t,” He shakes his head.

She sighs, “You should. I know it sucks, you’re a good kid, you don’t deserve any of that. They’ll move on, get over it, you’re probably not fun to tease.”

“They’ve been doing it for years,” Regulus counters.

She sighs, “I’m sorry, Reg, it sucks. I wish there was something I could do.”

“It’s not your fault,” He stops her, “It’s fine.”

“You know, you can write me about this during the year,” She points out, “When I say I want to hear about everything, I mean it.”

“It’s fine,” He brushes her off again. He doesn’t want her worrying, he doesn’t want _anyone_ worrying.

She doesn’t get another word in before Nymphadora comes running back down the hall with Sirius, sitting him down and grabbing Regulus’ hand, “We trade.”

“Oh, we’re trading?” Andromeda laughs, “Alright, bye Regulus.”

Regulus waves goodbye as he gets pulled off into Nymphadora’s room, her pushing him into sitting on the bed.

“Look look,” She pulls a bin out of her closet, which is filled with what looks like crocheted bees in every color, “Bees!”

“Lots of bees,” He comments, sifting through the box. They’re definitely made at Andromeda’s hand, she’s been crocheting practically all his life.

“Mum made them,” She smiles, “There’s a lot.”

“Mhm, do you know how many?” He asks, knowing that’s way too many bees for her.

“Uhm, don’t know,” She shakes her head, “Help me count.”

“Ok, pour them out, we’ll count,” He tells her, moving to sit on the ground as she tips the bin of crochet bees over. He counts with her, she gets lost after 10, placing them in the bin as they go. They count 25, each a unique color or pattern. 

“25,” He finishes, “How many now?”

“25,” She hesitantly pronounces, him smiling in response. 

“Yeah, you got it,” He nods, “You counted really high.”

“Yay!” She claps, “We did it!”

“Mhm,” He nods, watching her pick up the bucket and dump it out again. She picks one up and throws it at him, giggling like an idiot. He playfully gasps, “You threw it!”

“No, no I didn’t,” She shakes her head, picking up another one and throwing it. He catches it and tosses it in the bucket, letting her keep throwing them from various angles for him to grab out of the air. They’re a little bigger than he’s used to, but he catches every one.

He throws the last one in the bucket, “Oh no, I caught them all.”

“Again!” She dumps them out and does it all over again. “Yay! Again again!” 

They do it 3 more times, Regulus only missing one that she throws about 3 feet away from him.

“Do it to me,” She dumps them out in front of him, before dragging the empty bucket to the other side of the room, “I’ll catch.” 

He throws her as soft of tosses as he can, she still struggles to catch them. Every time she doesn’t she says it doesn’t count and moves on. Still, she manages to catch a fair few. 

“You did so good,” He encourages her, waiting for her to inevitably make him do it again. She doesn’t though, but she does drag it over to the bed. She gets up onto her bed and points at the spot next to her.

“Sit here,” She tells him, Regulus listening. She just looks at him, as if he had asked her to sit there. “What’re we doing?”

“Um,” He looks over at the bin, “Do they have names?”

“Bees?” She asks, and he nods. She shakes her head, “Mm-mm.”

“Why don’t we name them?” He asks, picking out the first one, a simple yellow and black bee. “What is this one’s name?” 

“Uhh, that’s Dad Bee,” She tells him. He pulls out a green and black one, the green resembling the Slytherin green. “That’s Mum Bee.” 

“They’re the same colors as your Mum and Dad,” Regulus says, and she nods. 

“Yeah, they go here,” She places them next to her, “Next one next one.”

He begins to pull them out one by one, and she names each various objects in the room or something to do with its color. He picks up one, though, done in a pretty, almost pastel green yarn that he comments on.

“This is a pretty one.”

“That’s you!” She excitedly points, “Reglus bee.”

“What’s his name?” Regulus asks, confused.

“Reglus bee,” She repeats, “You hold.”

He keeps that bee by his side, picking out the last few ones and having her name them. Once he’s finished, she hands him two of them.

“Tell a story,” She says, “With Pinky and Buzz.”

“Ok, hmm,” He thinks a moment of a storyline, although it really doesn’t matter what he says because she’ll listen anyway.

“They’re going to school,” She tells him, snuggling into his side.“Ok?”

“Mhm,” He nods, before launching them into the strangest story he’s probably ever told. She’s asleep in 5 minutes flat. 

And he’s knocked out in 10.


	66. Soon

“Reg,” Someone calls, “Reg.” 

Regulus stirs awake, going to sit up but feeling an odd weight on his arm. He looks over to see Nymphadora, asleep half on top of him. He looks back over to the doorway, where Andromeda is smiling at him.

“Oh, I’m so sorry,” He quickly apologizes. She invited him over and he just completely fell asleep, that’s insanely rude.

“No no, don’t apologize, if I wanted you awake I would have just woken you up,” She brushes him off, “Don’t feel bad about it.”

He doesn’t say that he does, but he still definitely does. Although, apparently it’s also written all over his face because she immediately catches on.

“No, I mean it,” She presses, “Sirius, Ted, and I were just talking about what we wanted to do for dinner, we thought you would want to join the discussion.”

“Yeah, uh,” He looks over at Nymphadora, who is currently trapping him.

“She’s a heavy sleeper, just kind of move her off,” Andromeda instructs, Regulus managing to get up and head out of the room, letting Andromeda crack the door before they walk down the hallway. 

“Good morning, Reg,” Sirius jokingly remarks as Regulus sits down next to him, “Sleep well?”

“Shut up,” Regulus elbows him, Sirius reaching over and trying to ruffle his already messy hair. Regulus ducks away, “Sirius!”

“It’s already a mess,” Sirius manages to do it anyway, “I didn’t help nor hinder you.” 

“But I didn’t like it.”

“Mm, well, too bad,” Sirius reaches over again, Regulus grabbing him before he can do anything. He keeps trying anyway, Regulus fighting off laugher as he  _ insists  _ on continuing to mess up his hair. 

“You two are ridiculous,” Andromeda shakes her head, sitting next to Ted. Sirius only gives it up when he gets a hand on his head, both laughing. 

“Ok, back to what we were doing,” Sirius sits back up, “Where are we going?”

“Do you want to do that cafe? Fog? Something like that?” Ted asks, Andromeda pinching the bridge of her nose.

“Haze, Ted, Haze Cafe,” She sighs, suppressing a laugh.

“Oh sh- Whatever, it’s the same thing, You knew what I meant,” He waves her off, “Dora loves that place, she’ll be thrilled.”

“Was that where we stopped in the other day, Andy?” Sirius asks, “With the cool couches?”

“Yeah, that’s Haze,” Andromeda nods, “It’s a household favorite. They’re not really a cafe, though, they’re more like a diner.”

“That sounds good to me,” Sirius shrugs, looking at Regulus, “Any opposition, Reg?”

Regulus shakes his head, “That sounds fine.”

“Perfect, we’ll go when-“ Andromeda stops herself, listening to the creek of the door and footsteps down the hallway, “Ok, well I guess we’re going now.”

“Hi Dora,” Ted greets as she walks up in front of the couch, “Did you sleep good?”

“Mhm,” She nods, rubbing her eyes, “What’re you doing?”

“We’re going out to dinner, how does that sound?” Andromeda asks, “To the place with the couches.”

“Yeah!” She excitedly nods, “I like it!”

“Alright, let’s get you dressed to go out first,” Andromeda gets up, walking Nymphadora down the hallway, yelling behind her, “Don’t kill each other!”

“We will!” Sirius yells back, glaring at Regulus for a moment before going at him, tackling him on the couch. The two push at one another, both laughing. 

“You two are impossible,” Ted sighs.

“I’m winning though,” Sirius says just as Regulus pushes him back the other direction, “Hey! No way!”

Regulus messes up Sirius’ hair before sitting up, “Payback.”

“Oh, you’re in for it,” Sirius quips before going back at him again, deciding to tickle him instead. Unfortunately, Regulus is very ticklish. 

And he’s laughing so hard he can barely breathe. 

***

Dinner was surprisingly nice, although Regulus struggled to stomach a lot of it. Being out in public didn’t help his anxiety at  _ all _ , although Nymphadora was excited enough to distract him from it. She kept trying to have him try what she was eating, not understanding when he said no. He just doesn’t want to end up throwing it all back up in Andromeda’s bathroom, so he denied it every time. 

They all walk back into the house, Andromeda heading up the stairs first. Regulus and Sirius follow, Ted helping Nymphadora get her shows off on the landing.

“Here, come here you two, before I forget,” She beckons the two of them into the kitchen, handing them each a box, “There’s an assortment of cookies that Nymphaodra decided from our selection we made that you two would like. I have no one else to take my baking except you two, so you win.”

“Hey, I’ll take that,” Sirius laughs, “What time do we have to be back by? Did anyone commit that to memory?”

“9,” Regulus replies, glancing down at his watch. 8:45, he didn’t realize how long they spent walking around on that street.

“It’s almost 9, and I hate to kick you out but we need to start calming Dora down so she’s not in wide awake at 1 in the morning,” Andromeda sighs, “Here hold on- Ted!”

“Dromeda!” He jokingly yells back from where he’s standing at the end of the couch, “What do you need?”

“If we bring then boys home right now, do you think we could have Dora down by 9:30?”

“We could definitely try, probably better to not let her start playing with them before we send them home,” He pauses a moment, “Do you want to do the honors? She’s in her room.”

Andromeda takes a deep breath before yelling, “Dora! Come out and say goodbye!”

“That was not what I would have done, but alright,” Ted laughs, watching as Nymphadora runs down the hallway and into the kitchen.

“No no! Why?!” She grabs onto Regulus, “They stay.”

“They have to leave, honey, they’ll come back, but you have to be nice and say goodbye,” Andromeda softly scolds.

“Wait wait,” She runs back down the hallway, coming back out a minute later with one of the bees, the one named after Regulus. She holds it up to him, “Here.”

“Hm?” He looks at her confused, “It’s yours.”

“No, you have it,” Nymphadora insists, “It’s yours. Reglus Bee is yours.”

“Oh,” He takes it from her, “Thank you, Dora.”

“Yeah!” She holds her arms up, Regulus picking her up so she can give him a hug, “I’ll miss you.”

He sighs, rubbing the back of her head, “I’ll miss you too.”

He doesn’t provide any words of comfort, because they’d all be fake. He’s probably going to miss her more than she’ll miss him, and he can’t even muster up the courage to lie to a 3-year-old. 

“You’ll be back?” She sits back, tears streaking their way down her face.

“Mhm,” He nods, “Soon.”

“When?”

He hesitates a second before nodding again, “Soon.”

She frowns at him before giving him another hug, not saying anything this time. He wraps his free arm around her, trying to internalize the feeling of love before it becomes a complete background player in his life. He’s  _ really _ resenting going back to school.

Finally, she sits back and he hands her off to Sirius, who gives a much more cheerful goodbye. Andromeda pulls Regulus into a hug.

“Not feeling too good?” Andromeda asks, and Regulus shakes his head. “You’ll be back soon, Easter Break isn’t as far as it seems.”

“Yeah,” He idly agrees, Andromeda stepping back to rub his shoulder.

“Write often, ok? I  _ mean it _ ,” She playfully scolds, Regulus letting out a small laugh. “Draw me a picture on a piece of paper, I don’t even care.”

“I’ll try,” He nods.

“That’s all I ask,” She smiles, looking over as Nymphadora grabs out for her. She takes her from Sirius, then giving her to Ted who walks in to take her.

“I’m sure I’ll see you boys again when you come back from school,” He laughs, “But for now,” He tickles Nymphadora, “I have to put this monster to bed.”

“It was good seeing you,” Sirius says, “Good luck with that.”

“I’ll need it,” He huffs before walking down the hallway. Andromeda turns to Sirius, pulling him into a huge hug while bidding their goodbyes. Sirius is still smiling and happy. Regulus is jealous of him. 

Andromeda steps back and looks at the two of them a moment before beckoning them to follow her.

“Come on, let’s get you two home.”

***

Regulus  _ can’t stop thinking _ . 

He’s pacing back and forth in his room, unable to sit still since everyone else went off to bed. His anxiety about going back is eating him alive, and as much as he could probably sit down, walking is at least giving him an outlet for his nerves. He would go down to the piano room, but Mrs. Potter asked that he didn’t so he could get some sleep tonight. He’s listening to half of that deal. 

His mother’s threat looms over him, making absolutely everything  _ years _ worse than it already was. She could show up tomorrow. She could be at King’s Cross. She could be on the platform. He just doesn’t know and he absolutely despises it.

He glances at the clock as he walks back in that direction. 1:03. He has a horrible feeling it’s going to be an excruciatingly long night. 

He knows why this was worse than how he felt back in August: Cynthia.  _ Goddamn James _ for surfacing that feeling, because now he’s terrified to talk to her again. He can’t make a fool of himself, and the only way he can avoid doing so is through avoiding her entirely. It’ll be better for her anyway, he tells himself, the last thing she needs is someone like him. And unfortunately, that sentiment is starting to sink in with him.

He tries to swallow the lump that forms in his throat, ultimately failing and having to wipe away tears while he tries to keep quiet. Sirius is right next door, and he’ll wake up at anything.

He jumps when he hears the door open, looking up to see Mrs. Potter peeking in the doorway, clearly ready for bed. He assumes immediately that she must have heard him, so he walks over to sit on his bed.

“Sorry,” He apologizes before she can even say anything. 

“No no, nothing to be sorry for, I was already awake,” She walks over and takes a seat next to him, “Why’re you up, though, dear?”

He shakes his head, “I can’t sleep.”

“Are you sick or just nervous? Or something else?” She prompts, putting a hand on his knee. 

“Little bit of everything,” He shrugs, “It’s fine, I’m sorry.”

“Is it tomorrow?” She asks, and he nods. “I know, it’s a lot, but you’ll be back home so soon. And I’m always here to write, even if you just need to ramble a little, alright?”

He nods but none of it really eases any fear. It’s not her fault, she’s saying all the right things, he just can’t accept them. 

“And on top of that, Sirius and James are always there for you,” She reminds him, “Even if you don’t  _ want _ it, they’re always there if you need it.”

He nods again, just as idly as before. It’s not the people who  _ don’t  _ like him he’s scared of seeing again. It’s Cynthia. 

She sighs, but not out of annoyance, “I don’t think I’m easing any fears, am I?”

He shakes his head, “It’s not your fault, I’m sorry.”

“I really want you to get some sleep for tomorrow, here,” She gets up, “I’ll be back in a moment, let me see if I have anything that might help.”

He nods as she walks back out of the room, hearing her head down the hall into the bathroom before going downstairs. He’ll take whatever she can give him, he’s simultaneously exhausted and completely wired. It’s a horrible feeling. 

She comes back up a couple of minutes later, a small cup in her hands. It has a deep blue medicine in it, unlike the purple liquid she gives him for headaches. 

She hands it to him, “This should help ease some of your nerves, let you get a little rest. This shouldn’t taste like much at all.”

He drinks it and he barely tastes anything. He really hopes this works or tomorrow is going to be just as miserable as tonight was. Surprisingly, she doesn’t leave, instead taking a seat next to him again. 

“It’s strong, so it’ll take at most 10 minutes for that to kick in, but probably less,” She smiles over at him, “I’m not a fan of sleeping aids, I’ve seen too many horror stories. But this is what they’re meant for, so that’s alright.”

“Thank you,” He answers.

“Do you want to talk through any of it?” She proposes, “Or talk about something else, whatever you’re comfortable with.”

He shakes his head, “You don’t have to stay.”

“I want to, I’m staying with you until that medicine kicks in,” She softly laughs, “And I’ll know when it does.”

He doesn’t reply. He doesn’t have anything to say.

She looks back onto his bed and points, “Where did that bee come from?” 

He looks back at the bee Nymphadora gave him, grabbing it off the bed, “Dora gave it to me, Andy crocheted her a ton of them.”

“Oh, Andromeda crochets?” Mrs. Potter questions, “I prefer knitting, but I can do both.”

“Andy tried to teach me to crochet,” He toys with the bee in his hands, “I was never any good. I could only make a straight line.”

She nods, “I’ll have to teach you sometime, I think you’d be good at it.”

“I don’t know,” He shrugs.

“Playing piano tunes that technicality in your fingers that would probably help, I know it helped me,” She reasons, “It also helps in things like braiding hair, but I digress.”

“I’m half-decent at braiding,” He answers, “I used to do Narcissa’s. And Sirius’, but that’s beside the point.”

“Did Andromeda teach you?” 

“Mhm,” He nods.

“Then I’ll definitely have to teach you how to crochet,” She comments, rubbing his knee, “Maybe knitting too, you’d probably be good at that. Only if you want, of course.”

He nods, smiling, “That sounds fun.”

“I could never sit James down for long enough to have him do it,” She shakes her head and rolls her eyes, “He would always tell me he wanted to knit, but never sit and learn.”

“Sounds like him,” Regulus softly laughs, yawning. His anxiety still hums in his ear, but it’s starting to fade into the background. Tiredness is starting to pull harder and harder at him, whatever she gave him is  _ strong _ . 

“That kicked in, didn’t it?” She smiles, “I figured it wouldn’t take long, especially because things have a tendency to kick in fast on you.”

He lazily nods, “Thank you.”

“Of course,” She leans over and gives him a kiss on the head, to which he’s too tired to react to more than a smile, before walking towards the door. She looks back before she walks out, “Goodnight, Regulus.”

“Goodnight, Mrs. Potter.”


	67. Compartment 109

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> omg im so so so happy people are liking this story. i've been working on it for a while as just a strange personal project, but i'm so excited you all like reading it!! y'alls comments make me SO happy, i've reached my niche of regulus fans. go us for adoring a character who gets mentioned like twice

Regulus steps out onto the platform, his hands shaking so much he feels like he’s going to drop the trunk he’s dragging behind him. Mrs. Potter’s hand comes off his shoulder and he panics, looking back to make sure she didn’t go anywhere. She hasn’t, she’s just helping James pick up something he dropped. 

“Sorry, dear,” Mrs. Potter walks back and puts her hand back where it was, “James dropped something.”

He nods and lets her guide him further onto the platform. James and Sirius go to walk away, but she stops them. 

“Boys,” She calls, “Do I get a goodbye?”

“Oh- Sorry Mum,” James laughs, Mrs. Potter walking up to say goodbye to both of them. Regulus nervously looks around for Cynthia, because he wants to really avoid seeing her right now, where he is about 3 seconds away from crying. He just wishes he could go back home, take Mrs. Potter up on her offer to teach him to crochet, tell James to be quiet for the 14th time when he listens to him play. He’d take _any_ of that right now.

Mrs. Potter walks up to him, pulling him into a tight hug. 

“It’ll be alright, dear, it’ll be fine,” She calmly assures him, “I’ll miss you, but you’ll be back soon.”

He nods, not letting go for a moment before she presses a kiss to his head and she steps back. He looks up at her, still desperately biting back anxious tears. 

“Write often, alright?” She rubs his shoulder, “I’m always ready to hear it.”

He nods again, barely whispering, “Thank you.”

“Of course,” She gives him another quick hug, which he would have despised on any occasion other than this one. “I’ll see you soon, Regulus.”

He nods and watches as she walks off towards the exit, waving before she phases back off of Platform 9 ¾.

“Reg,” Sirius calls his attention over, “Come on, we’re getting on.”

Regulus follows after him and James, anxiously looking around the platform for anyone he knows, good or bad. He keeps his head down enough that he’s sure no one could notice him anyway, although the two in front of him certainly aren’t discreet. 

They drop off their trunks and get on the train, Regulus sitting uncomfortably next to Sirius, who is across from James in their otherwise empty compartment. Sirius didn’t comment on the fact that he followed them in here, and he doesn’t think James noticed the change. 

“Did Marlene go home for break?” James asks, looking at Sirius.

“Yeah, she went home with Dorcas, remember?” Sirius reminds him, “They were all over each other on the way here.”

“Right, right,” James nods, “You say that like that’s not how you act with Remus all the time.”

“And so what? Good for them,” Sirius looks over at Regulus, “Are you staying with us?”

Well, apparently he is going to comment on it.

Regulus loses the words to respond, looking for a way to tell him that he doesn’t have to stay if they don’t want him to. He’s really here uninvited and he knows that.

“It’s fine if you want to, I’m just interested,” Sirius clarifies, “You can stay, it’ll probably just be me, James, Marlene, and Dorcas. As long as you’re fine with them making out the whole time it’s not an issue.”

Regulus shrugs. James saying what he is thinking. “We watch you and Remus make out all the time, Marlene and Dorcas will be fine.”

“So yeah?” Sirius asks Regulus again, and Regulus nods. “Cool with me.”

The door to their compartment slides open, Regulus looking over to see Marlene peeking her head in, “Are we invited?”

“‘Course you are,” Sirius gestures inside, Marlene pulling Dorcas in after her as they grab their seats on the same side of the compartment as Sirius and Regulus. 

“Reg, come sit here,” James pats the spot next to him, “So Marlene and Sirius can plot crimes and you don’t have to be squished next to it.”

“Aww, how’d you know?” Marlene laughs, Regulus moving over to sit next to James, who beams over at him.

“Hi Reg,” James greets, Regulus just giving him a halfhearted smile in return. It’s all he can muster at the moment, he’s on the brink of either having a panic attack or sobbing, neither of which is really suited for this situation. 

“Are you ok?” James asks, concern starting to paint his face. Regulus nods, although the lack of a verbal response doesn’t really help his argument. “Do you want me to talk your ear off about something?”

Regulus shrugs because he probably wouldn’t mind that. It’s something to focus on other than the clouded thoughts dominating his head at the moment. 

Although, Regulus doesn’t account for his inability to focus on anything. James talks, but pretty much immediately Regulus gets lost, tuning in and out of what he’s saying. The words start to not make sense, and it’s doing more harm than good hearing James ramble.

“James,” Sirius, who has moved to lean against the wall closest to the door and prop his feet up, stops him, “What’re you rambling about?”

“Whatever comes to mind,” James shrugs, “Why?”

“I’m just completely confused, I’m trying to follow but you’re making no sense,” Sirius says, “And I don’t think it is to Reg, either.”

“Reg is listening, right, Reg?” 

Regulus gives him a small nod, looking over as Sirius stares at him. He knows Regulus wasn’t listening, and Regulus is sure to shoot him a look that tells him he’s trying his best. 

“Marlene, I can’t _stand_ the two of them and their eye communication,” James complains, “They just had a full fucking conversation, right there.” 

“Good for them,” Marlene laughs, “You lived with them and still haven’t picked it up?”

“Could you understand it? No,” James playfully shoots back, “They’re _impossible_ to talk to in the same room.”

Sirius chimes in, “Maybe if you learned-”

He’s cut off by a knock on the compartment door just as the train rocks into motion, everyone’s head shooting over. Sirius leans over and opens it, Cynthia leaning in. 

“Do you know where-” She starts to ask before Sirius points at Regulus across from him, causing her to look over “Oh! Hi Reggie!”

He ignores that his face feels like it’s on fire, settling for just waving at her. 

“V, who at some point went home for break, and I grabbed a compartment a few doors down, do you want to come hang out with us?” She asks.

Regulus does _not_ want to do that and he tries to tell her maybe he’ll come later, but he doesn’t make any sound. He looks over to Sirius to answer for him because apparently, his voice doesn’t want him out of this situation as much as he does. 

Luckily, Sirius saves him. “Reg is probably going to stay in here for a little, it’s been a rough few days,” Sirius says, “Maybe later.”

“Oh,” She gives Regulus a saddened look, “I’m sorry Reggie, but we’ll be in 109 if you want to come by.”

He nods, barely whispering, “Thank you.”

Cynthia smiles at him before walking back out, shutting the compartment door behind her. He leans back, looking at his hands shakily fidgeting in his lap. 

“I’m only saving you this once,” Sirius points out, Regulus looking up. “You have to get over it.”

Regulus looks over at James annoyed because of _course,_ he told Sirius. James rubs the back of his neck, clearly catching the hint.

“I’m sorry, we were just talking and he asked sometimes and I just said it,” He sighs, “I didn’t mean to, sorry, Reg.”

Regulus looks off towards his hands again, not responding. He shouldn’t have trusted James to keep a secret, he knows he can’t. But he really had no choice because _James_ was the reason he figured it out at all, he’s inherently going to know. Regardless of how stupid _he_ was for thinking James wouldn’t tell, with everything else sitting on his shoulders right now, it hurts. Just a little.

“Goddamnit, Sirius, why’d you make me tell you?” James complains although it doesn’t sound much like he’s joking.

“All I did was ask you once,” Sirius responds, “You just told me.”

“I’m sorry, Reg,” He apologizes again.

Regulus looks up at him. “It’s fine,” He mumbles. James wraps an arm around his shoulders for a moment, rubbing his shoulder before dropping his arm again. The energy between the three of them is tense, the only sounds being Marlene and Dorcas' conversation. He feels Sirius stare at him a moment, but he doesn’t look up. Whatever Sirius has to say probably _isn’t_ nice, and he doesn’t want to hear it.

Sirius starts talking to Marlene again, a conversation Regulus is sure is either disgusting or extremely illegal. James doesn’t join in, and a glance in his direction tells Regulus he genuinely feels really bad. Regulus wishes he could tell him he’s not mad at him, it wasn’t his fault, but that wouldn’t do anything. James, for as happy as he always is, is a little sensitive sometimes. 

That feeling from last night creeps back in, where he’s both tired and completely awake. He leans back against the seat behind him, crossing his arms and trying to get a little more comfortable. It works, kind of, but it doesn’t ease any of his nerves.

“Reg,” James calls his attention up, “Do you want a blanket? I have that big knitted one from home up there.” He points above them where James’ bags are.

Regulus shakes his head, despite being kind of cold. Although he has to give James credit, he knows him well and gets up and grabs the big yellow and purple blanket. James sits relatively close to him and drapes it over the both of them. 

“Thank you,” Regulus quietly says, pulling the blanket up so it’s covering him. 

“No problem,” James replied, moving a little closer, but not too close.

Regulus’ eyelids start to feel heavy. He blames it on the blanket, which smells just like _home_. He doesn’t want to fall asleep, but his eyes keep threatening to close on him, and James’ shoulder next to him just looks like such a nice pillow. 

Sirius and Marlene’s conversation starts to fade into the background, blinking growing more into falling asleep. He keeps his head upright for as long as possible, but it starts to nod off to the side. James moves closer again so he’s right next to him, Regulus, in his half-asleep state, taking that as an invitation to lay his head on his shoulder. James just wraps an arm around him.

Sure enough, he’s asleep within a couple of minutes.

***

Sirius looks away from Marlene, seeing Regulus leaning against James, completely knocked out.

“How long has he been asleep?” Sirius asks, pointing.

“10 minutes?” James answers, quite quietly for James, “Something like that.”

“Shit, go you,” Sirius laughs, “Probably good for him, though, he woke up at like 4 last night.”

“How do you know?” Marlene asks, “Don’t you and James share a room?”

“Yeah, but I wake up at anything,” Sirius reasons, “He went downstairs, but _I_ went back to sleep. I care, but not that much.”

“Touching,” Marlene deadpans, glancing over to Regulus, “Does he always just look impossibly tried? Because he looked like that the last two times I saw him.”

“Yeah, that’s pretty much plastered onto his face,” Sirius nods, “Granted, you asked me the same thing when you first met me.”

“Yeah, well you do too, must be genetic,” She shrugs, “Although him more so, but I think he’s also smaller than you are so it just, I don’t know, shows up more.”

“That’s saying something, Sirius is short,” James chimes in.

Sirius rolls his eyes, “Now you’re bringing me into this? Unnecessary.”

“Maybe if you just grew we wouldn’t have to,” Marlene playfully jeers back.

“Amazing advice, Marlene, I’ll be sure to take it next time.”

Marlene laughs, “But really, is he? Was that a correct assumption?”

“Mhm, a decent amount too, haven’t you seen us, like, next to one another?” Sirius asks.

“I was drunk, I don’t remember that,” Marlene argues, “And he was on the floor for most of it, while you were squished under Remus.”

“Fair,” Sirius shrugs. Almost on cue, the door to their compartment opens, Cynthia leaning in, a cat on her shoulder. She looks first at Regulus, then over to Sirius.

“Hi,” She waves, “I was going to ask if he wanted to say hi to my cat, but I’m guessing that’s a no at the moment.”

“Yeah, just a little,” He shrugs, “Maybe in like an hour.”

“I’ll come back,” She nods, “Thank you Sirius.”

“No problem,” He answers, Cynthia shutting the door and heading back to her compartment. Sirius looks at James, “He’s going to have a hard time with that, can’t wait.”

“It’ll be fine,” James brushes him off, “Don’t wish bad on Reg, that’s mean.”

“What are you two talking about? It’s Cynthia, they’re practically inseparable,” Marlene looks between him and James, confused, “Did something happen?”

“No, we’re talking about something else,” Sirius casually brushes her off, shooting a glance at James to make sure he isn’t going to out Regulus for a second time. 

“You’re sure?”

“Yeah, it’s something else,” James nods, clearly trying as best as he can to lie convincingly. He’s a horrible liar, but Marlene seems to buy it.

“Whatever, I don’t really care that much,” She shrugs, “Anyway, you were telling me about James’ family?”

“You guys were talking about my family?” James questions, “Why?”

“I’ve met them twice, so they’re a conversation topic,” Sirius replies, “But I was telling Marlene about the triplets.”

“Oh, they’re _insane_ ,” He starts, “So, Percy is my cousin, and they’re his kids, but they’re nothing like him…” 


	68. Rough Week

Regulus manages to avoid Cynthia for the entire rest of the train ride, granted he’s asleep for most of it. He also manages to get off the train fast enough to make it up to his dorm without seeing her. When he hears everyone going out to dinner he doesn’t follow them. He can skip one meal today, it’s fine. He wouldn’t eat it anyway. 

He’s surprised when he hears someone call his name, pulling his curtain open the rest of the way to see Cynthia in the doorway.

“Hey Reggie,” She greets, grabbing a seat on his bed, “Did you come to dinner today?”

He shakes his head, the movement sharp rather than natural. He’s never been  _ nervous _ around Cynthia before, and he absolutely despises this feeling. 

“Why?” She questions, “Did something happen?”

He shakes his head again, “I’m not hungry.”

“You should still  _ try _ and eat something,” She presses, “It’s not over, do you want to go grab something with me? You can eat it in my dorm, Turtle would love to see you.”

He pauses a second, torn over saying no. He really wants to say yes, hang out in her dorm again, sit with Turtle and listen to her hum along to the radio. But he can’t, because all he’s going to do is drag her down with him. He’s not comfortable around her anymore and it’s not even her fault.

“Not right now,” He reluctantly answers, “I don’t feel great, maybe later.”

“Alright,” She smiles back, rubbing his knee, “I hope you feel better, Reggie. I’ll be in my dorm if you want to come visit, though.”

He nods, watching her walk out of the room, giving her one last wave before shutting the door. He just stares at the door, an incredibly heavy sinking feeling in his chest. All of a sudden he can’t be around the one person who  _ hasn’t  _ abandoned him, who always puts up with his stupid problems. He just turned down an opportunity to be around  _ her _ , someone he cares about more than anything. But he  _ can’t _ . He can’t care about her. For his sake and hers. 

Maybe he’ll get her to understand that.

***

“Remus!” James calls as he walks into the room, poking his head around Remus’ curtain to see him half awake, a book on his chest, “I have information for you that you asked for.”

“James, leave him alone,” Sirius chides, “Come play with Peter and me.”

“Is this what I think it is?” Remus tiredly asks, James nods. Remus sits up, pulling his legs in, “Come sit.”

James grabs a seat in front of him, pulling the curtain closed the rest of the way, silencing the rest of the room. Despite the dark eye bags under Remus’ eyes, he’s still looking at James attentively.

“So, it was actually an accident, Reg and I were up on that little flat spot on our roof drinking a bottle of Firewhiskey Sirius got from his cousin,” James shakes his head, “Unnecessary details, ok- He was talking about Cynthia, I asked him if he fancied her, naturally I’m nosy, and I watched him figure it out. So yes, he does, but he’s  _ terrified _ of it. We could barely even talk about it.”

“Ok, ok,” Remus nods, “Well, I mean, at least I’m up 5 galleons, but I feel bad for Regulus.”

“Yeah, he wasn’t at dinner,” James says, “And he stayed with us on the train, even after Cynthia offered for him to hang out with them. So yeah, just thought I’d let you know though.”

“Thank you, James,” Remus rubs his face, “I don’t mean to kick you out, but I miss silence and feel like shit, so…”

“That’s all I wanted to tell you so I’ll let you go back to Moony activities,” James laughs, getting up, “Bye Remus!”

“Bye,” Remus waves, James shutting his curtain and walking over to grab a seat on his bed, where Sirius and Peter are already setting a game of Exploding Snap up.

“Hello everyone, hope you missed me,” James greets, “What’re we playing?”

“Take a guess,” Sirius jokingly deadpans.

“Hmm, I don’t know,” James laughs, “Kind of challenging, right, Peter?”

“So hard,” Peter shakes his head.

“What did you tell Remus about?” Sirius asks as James picks up his cards.

“Nothing, something he asked me about,” James shrugs, Sirius staring at him for a moment. He’s trying to get James to tell him, but James cuts the conversation off before he says something wrong. “Who is starting?”

“Let Peter start, you’ve been starting all break,” Sirius says, Peter nodding before looking through his cards and throwing down one.

James groans, “Oh, you’re  _ kidding me _ !”

***

Regulus’ ‘I’m not feeling good’ excuse works for about a week. Granted, it’s not a lie, he feels horrible, but normally that would  _ increase _ his time with Cynthia, rather than the other way around. He’s only talked to her in class, and in fleeting moments in the common room or when she comes in to ask how he is, and he’s managed to avoid dinner entirely. Every single time they talk he craves that comfort feeling, but it just isn’t the  _ same _ . Although he can tell she’s getting closer to pushing for an answer, he’s putting off changing his excuse. He’s too tired to think of a new one.

Now, in his clouded, tired headspace, he has to somehow attend Quidditch practice. 

The second he walks onto the pitch someone runs up to him, “Reg!” 

Regulus looks up to see James running up to him, beaming from ear to ear, carrying his broom and in his uniform. 

Regulus looks at him confused, “Why are you here?”

“Emma asked me if I could come work with you today,” He answers, “She said she had a great practice plan for the Chasers, but nothing for you or either of your Beaters. So I’m here to work with you, and- well, I don’t know what she’s doing with the two of them.”

“They’ll work with one another,” Regulus says, “They normally do anyway.”

“But  _ I _ get to work with you, that’s the fun part.” 

“Of course,” Regulus playfully gushes, earning a laugh from James. They both walk up to the rest of the team, Regulus quickly realizing how late he was. His two hours of sleep was accidentally right before he had to be here.

“Hey Reg,” Emma greets. 

“Sorry,” He immediately apologizes, “I didn’t mean to be late.”

“No sweat, you’re fine,” She assures him, “You’re never late, it’s no big deal.”

He nods, listening as she runs through her normal greeting and practice layout. She doesn’t mention what he’s doing once, so at least he knows James wasn’t lying. Although, he’d rather practice alone because James normally comes with a conversation, and considering he’s been holed up in his dorm for a week, that conversation probably won’t be enjoyable. 

“Reg, I’m sure James has told you that you’re working with him,” She says, looking over at him, “He’s thrilled, good luck with that.”

Regulus stifles a laugh, looking back at James behind him, who is visibly very excited to be here.

“Glad I could make your day by inviting you, James,” Emma comments.

“You’re welcome for helping you, Emma,” James jokingly shoots back, Emma rolling her eyes.

“Oh shut up, you act like you weren’t so excited when I asked you.”

“You’re still welcome,” He maintains, “We’re going to have a great time, right, Reg?”

“Mhm,” Regulus nods, James resting his arm on Regulus’ shoulder for the remainder of Emma’s speech, most of which does not involve him. Finally, she waves them off.

“Alright, go stretch on your own, and you  _ have to  _ stretch,” She eyes Jack, who holds his hands up, “Bye everyone, Chasers come here when you’re done.”

James grabs Regulus’ arm and drags him off to the side, taking Regulus’ broom and propping them both up beside one another on the wall. Regulus mirrors James as he starts to stretch, and the silence only lasts about 6 seconds.

“So Reg,” James starts, “How have you been?”

“Alright,” Regulus responds, “How are you?”

“I mean, I’m good, but things were kind of shit this week,” James sighs, “I was actually going to ask you about it yesterday, but I got caught up in something and then Emma asked me to help out so I just decided to wait until now but I don’t know if starting a practice off like that is great, you know?”

“Just tell me,” Regulus tells him, now concerned for what is going on. This wasn’t the kind of bad conversation Regulus envisioned happening.

“Well, I don’t know, Sirius has been really down this week,” James says, his previous cheery tone completely gone, “He’s been in bed for 90% of the day, he didn’t go to classes today at all nor did he go to dinner the past two days. He’s just been really off, and he won’t really even let Remus near him, which is  _ really _ weird.”

Regulus nods, almost positive he knows what’s going on. Sirius has gotten like that ever since he and Regulus were kids, in the same way that Regulus goes into overdrive when something stressful happens, Sirius tends to go the other direction.

“And like, I don’t know, he’s been like this before, it isn’t  _ new _ , but even still every time it happens I never know what to do and I feel  _ horrible _ ,” James vents, “He won’t talk about what’s up, and it’s starting to make Remus worry, which in turn is making Peter worry, and  _ I’m _ trying to hold us all together but it isn’t going well.”

“So you want my help?” Regulus finishes for him, James nodding. 

“Yeah, are you doing anything after practice?” James asks, “I mean, you can totally say no, but I was talking to Remus and he said that you probably know Sirius better than us, considering you kind of grew up with him.”

“I’m not doing anything,” Regulus says, taking a seat to continue stretching just as James does, “I won’t be much help, but I’ll try.”

James smiles at him, “Thank you Reg. Maybe he’ll talk to you, who knows.” 

“I doubt it,” Regulus replies, “But I’ll try.”

“That’s all we need,” James answers, clearly struggling to put back on his cheerful facade after talking about that.

Regulus decides maybe it’s appropriate to ask him how he’s doing. “Are you doing alright?” He prompts, James looking at him almost surprised.

“Me?” He questions, Regulus nodding. “Yeah, I’m fine. Having Sirius tell me to leave him alone all the time is a little draining, but I’m doing ok.”

Regulus nods again, not saying anything else as they finish stretching. With James not super upbeat and Regulus definitely not ready to do any physical activity today, practice is going to be interesting. 

Well, at least he’s not the only one having a rough week.

***

Regulus walks into his brother’s dorm behind James, still in his Quidditch uniform, his normal clothes tucked under his arm. James told him he can just use their shower, which he would much prefer to the clock his roommates tend to put him on every time he turns on the shower.

“Hi everyone, we’re back,” James greets, “I brought Reg with me.”

“Hi Regulus,” Remus waves from his bed, notably without Sirius. Sirius’ bed has the curtain completely closed, and around it is a total mess. He doesn’t see Peter in the room at all.

“Do you want to shower first?” James asks, looking back at him.

Regulus shrugs, “I don’t care.”

“You can go first then, I’ll be in there for way longer than you will,” James laughs, “There’s a white towel on the rack you’re free to use, it’s no one’s in particular.”

Regulus nods before heading off into the bathroom, hearing Remus and James’ hushed and solemn conversation start before he shuts the door. He decides he’ll deal with that later and turns the water on, drowning it out.

He’s showered and dressed within 10 minutes, which is longer than it would normally take him. His mother always drilled into them not to take more than 5 minutes, but she’s not here, and he’s putting off having to figure out what’s going on out there.

He opens the door to James and Remus sitting on James’ bed, talking quite quietly considering James is in the conversation. 

James looks up at him, “Oh, hi Reg!”

Regulus waves at him and James gets up and walks towards the bathroom, pausing before he walks in. 

“I believe in you,” James smiles at him before walking in and shutting the door.

Regulus walks right up to Sirius’ bed and pulls the curtain back. 

“Leave me alone James,” Sirius groans, rolling over to face away from him. He doesn’t even realize his mistake until Regulus speaks.

“Unfortunately I’m not James,” Regulus says, “And I’m not leaving you alone, move.” 

Sirius looks over at him, his eyes extremely tired, “What the fuck are you doing here?”

“Move,” Regulus repeats, swatting at Sirius’ legs under the blanket. He reluctantly sits up, leaving his legs outstretched but moving them over so Regulus can sit on the bed. 

“Why are you here?” Sirius asks again, rubbing his eyes. 

“To talk to you,” Regulus answers, “What’s wrong?”

“Nothing is wrong, Reg, who the hell sent you?” Sirius questions, Regulus’ only response being closing the curtain all the way. “Answer me.”

“I asked first, you answer my question,” Regulus presses. 

“Nothing I-”

“So why aren’t you with Remus?” Regulus cuts him off, Sirius clearly caught off guard.

“Uh- He’s- I’m-” He stammers for an answer before shaking his head, “It doesn’t matter, why do you care?”

“Also doesn’t matter,” Regulus replies, “Tell me what’s wrong.”

Sirius sighs, “It’s nothing, Reg, stop it.”

“No.”

“Yes,” Sirius shoots back, “Leave.”

“No,” Regulus doesn’t move when Sirius weakly kicks him. 

Sirius crosses his arms, “Get. Out.”

“Not until you talk about it,” Regulus maintains, “Because  _ you _ cannot function until you talk about.”

“Shut up,” Sirius rolls his eyes, looking off to the side and staring, clearly zoned out thinking about something. He pretty much stops breathing, only snapping back into it when Regulus speaks.

“Sirius,” He calls, Sirius’ head snapping over, “Talk to me, what’s bothering you?”

“Everything just feels worthless,” Sirius starts, fiddling with his hands, “Like all we’re going to do is run from our family just for them to catch up to us again. What happened- What Bella said- That’s going to be it. And we have a home, yeah, but I just want to shake the old one. Yet knowing it will never happen just- It’s killing me, Reg.”

Regulus lets what he said sink in a moment, knowing he is simultaneously the most and least qualified to help him on this. But he’s gotten this far, he has to try.

“It won’t always be like that,” Regulus shakes his head, “She’ll stop, they’ll all stop. Did she ever visit after what Bella said?”

Sirius shakes his head.

“Exactly, it’ll get boring. It’ll take time for what happened to go away, yeah, but think of how much has changed already,” Regulus reasons, “It’ll only get better, but you have to let it get better. And the better it gets, the angrier Mum will be, and isn’t that just your favorite?”

Sirius stifles a soft laugh, nodding, “It is. But it just doesn’t feel like that, I guess.”

“And that’s fine,” Regulus assures him, “But it never will if you don’t let people help you. You can wallow for a little while, that’s fine, but you don’t  _ like _ to do that, so it’s going to do more harm than good.”

“I don’t want to burden James  _ or _ Remus with all of that,” Sirius leans his head back against the headboard, “You get it, they won’t.”

“Help them,” Regulus says, “They want to know, or they wouldn’t annoy you asking.”

“But they  _ can’t _ get it, it’s so different from what either of them have lived.”

“I mean, they won’t get it like I do, but they can still help,” Regulus reasons, “They care about you, Sirius, whether you like it or not. And if they’re there to listen,  _ let them help _ before it feels like you can’t.”

Sirius nods a moment, “Thank you, Reg.”

Regulus doesn’t answer him, staring a moment to make sure nothing else is wrong. Sirius reads right into it, though.

“That’s all that’s bothering me,” Sirius insists, “Other than feeling like shit for dumping that all on you, sorry.”

“Don’t,” Regulus pushes the curtain back and gets up, “You’ve helped me more times than I can count, now come out here and lay with your boyfriend,” Regulus glances over at Remus, who is laying on his bed looking particularly concerned. “He’s lonely.”

The curtain is drawn all the way back and Sirius swings his legs over, pausing before pushing himself up. He’s a little unsteady on his feet, but he hobbles over to flop right on top of Remus, who presses a kiss to the top of his head. Regulus walks over and grabs a seat on James’ bed, watching the two of them quietly talk. 

He knows Sirius isn’t magically better, and tomorrow he’ll probably crash again. But hopefully, it’ll be a little less, and the next day even less than that. As much as he hates him, it kills him to watch someone he looks up to struggle. But, in a weird way, it reminds him he’s not alone.

He still can’t stand Sirius, though.


	69. Selfish

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> nice

Regulus sits at the emptiest part of the table he can find, reluctantly starting to fill his dinner plate for the first time since he’s been home. He managed to go until Sunday without needing to go to dinner, breakfast and lunch were more than enough. But he was with James, Sirius, Remus, and Peter through dinner on Friday, and he didn’t go to any of the meals yesterday. He’s starving, and he doesn’t think his roommates would help him if he passed out in their dorm. 

He takes one bite before Cynthia sits in front of him, effectively spiking his anxiety and destroying his appetite. 

“Reggie, you’re at dinner,” She laughs, “I haven’t seen you in a while.”

He half-smiles up at her, watching her face fall as she immediately sees through it.

“What happened? Did I do something wrong?” She asks concerned.

He quickly shakes his head, “No, you’re fine. It’s nothing, just tired.”

“You look like you haven’t been sleeping, are you sure you’re alright?”

He nods, “I’m fine.”

“Come on Reggie, you don’t look good, I’ve barely seen you this week, there’s got to be something up,” She presses, “Please, let me help.”

He swallows the lump in his throat before shaking his head again, “It’s nothing, I just don’t feel good.”

“Don’t feel good how?” She prompts, “Like upset or sick?” 

“Just- not good,” He tries to dodge the question.

“Well, we have that Potions quiz coming up, I need a study buddy for it,” She offers, “Do you want to meet at the Library tomorrow afternoon or something?”

He looks off to the table, unable to stomach watching her reaction, “I’ll see. I think I have Quidditch.”

He still sees her face twist into hurt, even looking down. She knows he doesn’t have Quidditch on Mondays.

“I’ll let you eat,” She gets up, “I’m always here if you need anything.”

He nods, watching as she walks off to Vaughn and a few of her other friends further down the table. He pokes at his dinner, no longer feeling like eating any of it. He’s still starving, but his head is convincing him that he’s not hungry at all. And he knows if he eats any of this, he’ll just throw it back up.

He still sits there, hoping to build up enough will to at least stomach more than a bite. Although, that hope is destroyed when someone puts their foot on the bench in front of him. He looks up to see Avery, his smirk laced in malice.

“She’s giving up on you too, huh Black?” He laughs, “So funny, I’ve been waiting for that one. You really are just not enough for any of them, are you?”

Regulus doesn’t say anything, willing his face to stay frozen in a stone-cold stare in hopes Avery will give it up.

“Well, good thing we’re just so close, right?” Avery jeers, leaning over to look at Regulus’ plate, “What you got there? Not much, huh?” 

Avery grabs something off his plate before walking off without another word. 

Regulus grabs his bag and gets up, leaving his plate practically untouched. It isn’t worth it, and he goes to just walk back to his dorm and hole himself up again. He jumps when someone puts a hand on his shoulder, completely ready for it to be Avery again. 

He turns around surprised to see Sirius. 

“Where are you going?” Sirius asks, “I didn’t see you eat a bite off that plate.” 

“I’m not hungry,” Regulus pulls his shoulder away. 

“You haven’t eaten since Friday, yes you are,” Sirius argues, “So you need to eat something, I don’t care how that happens but you’re welcome to sit with us if you want.”

Regulus shakes his head, “I’ll eat something later-”

“No, you won’t, and we both know that,” Sirius pulls him towards the Gryffindor table, but Regulus pulls away. “Reg.”

“No,” Regulus maintains, “I’m not hungry, and I’m not sitting with you.”

“Would you feel more comfortable in our dorm? I’ll send James with you,” Sirius prompts, correctly taking Regulus’ lack of an answer as a yes. “Don’t move, I’ll be right back.”

Regulus listens, only moving so he’s no directly in the way of people moving in and out. It doesn’t take more than two minutes for James to walk over, beaming with two full plates in his hands. He holds one out to Regulus.

“I heard I get to eat dinner with you?” He happily greets, Regulus taking the plate and starting to follow him down the hallway. “We’re going to have a great time, especially because Remus and Sirius are feeling particularly touchy today. I’d rather be with you than watching them eye-fuck, you know?”

Regulus nods, listening to James continue to ramble about Remus and Sirius, and then about school, and then about the Quidditch practice Regulus was at. It feels a little normal, and by the time they make it back to their dorm Regulus is back to being starving again. 

He takes a seat across from James on his bed and slowly starts to eat what’s in front of him, indulging in the comfort for a little while. He tries to forget what Cynthia looked like when he turned down her plans. 

He doesn’t do a very good job at it, though.

***

Almost another week of dodging Cynthia and he’s starting to watch her get discouraged. 

He’s been telling her a list of different reasons, either that James asked him to hang out or that he’s just not feeling up to doing anything. She’s asked what’s wrong so many times, but he just can’t tell her anything. He’s hurt her this much, he no longer feels like he can fix things if he wanted to.

And now it’s Friday and today he doesn’t have any Quidditch to fill his schedule. 

He’s the first out of Transfiguration, hoping to get back before Cynthia can catch up to him, but he doesn’t get very far before she walks up beside him.

“Hey, Reggie!” She happily greets, “Are you feeling up for Hogsmeade tomorrow? I think it would be good, get a little fresh air, you know?”

He shrugs, “I don’t know.”

“Well, can you at least come hang out this afternoon?” She offers, “I haven’t seen you for two weeks, I really miss you.”

Hearing that absolutely destroys him, and as much as he tries to convince himself that he  _ should _ say yes, that he would enjoy it and it would probably make her week, the ‘what ifs’ get to him.

“Maybe,” He quietly answers, “I don’t know.”

“Please,” She pleads, “I know there’s something wrong, I hate seeing you upset if there’s something I can do to help.”

He looks to the ground, not saying anything. He can’t say anything, it’ll kill him to say no, and he can’t seem to force himself to say yes. She just quietly sighs before rubbing his shoulder. 

“I’ll see you around Reggie,” She softly says before turning back to talk to someone else. He can tell the happiness was forced, and he knows it’s his fault.

Selfish. Selfish plays like a broken record in his head, because he would rather hide away than spend time with his  _ best friend _ . Someone who has been with him through pretty much everything since he was 11, all of a sudden he’s giving her the cold shoulder. And now he’s hurting her. He’s  _ so _ selfish. Selfish selfish selfish selfish-

Ow!

Regulus looks up to see what he bumped into, seeing James smiling at him.

“Sorry,” Regulus mumbles an apology.

“Don’t worry about it,” James brushes it off, moving to walk with him, “You look upset, is there something up?”

Regulus shrugs, shaking his head, “It’s nothing.”

“I think it’s something,” James argues, grabbing his arm and steering him in a different direction, “Come on, I’m taking you with me.”

Regulus decides it’s not worth fighting, letting James drag him off towards Gryffindor Tower, up into his empty dorm. He doesn’t let go until they’re standing by James’ bed.

“Come sit,” James urges him, jumping on the bed and patting the spot in front of him. Regulus takes a seat, avoiding eye contact with James. 

“So, what’s going on, Reg?” James prompts, “And don’t say nothing, I know something is wrong.”

“You sound like Sirius,” Regulus comments, looking up, “And nothing.”

“No no no,” James protests, “You  _ have _ to tell me, you’re already here.”

“I didn’t have a choice,” Regulus points out.

“Exactly,” James replies, “Is it Cynthia?”

James manages to strike a nerve immediately and Regulus tears up. He doesn’t even know why, he just asked so suddenly and Regulus’ ‘selfish’ mantra just picks up tenfold. 

“Reg,” James breathes, looking at him sympathetically, “Is it?”

Regulus nods, doing what he can to bite back tears. It’s a fresh wound he would rather not be talking about, but James doesn’t seem to care. He just keeps pressing.

“What’s going on with her?” He calmly prompts, but Regulus can’t form any words to answer. All that comes out is a strangled sob, James not even hesitating before drawing Regulus in for a hug. Regulus lets himself just melt into James, not realizing  _ how much _ he’s been craving comfort for two weeks. Normally it’s Cynthia who talks him through things, gives him hugs, tells him it’s going to be ok. 

But now it’s different. And it’s all his fault.

The thought just makes him cry harder, James rubbing his back lightly. It’s a moment of vulnerability he never pictured sharing with James Potter, but yet, now, he couldn’t imagine wanting anyone else’s comfort.

At some point, Regulus thinks he hears the door open, but he never hears anyone walk in, so he figures he just made up the sound in his head. He doesn’t know how long they sit there, but it’s a long time. Long enough that Regulus starts to grow tired, although he refuses to fall asleep against James. He’d do it to Sirius, but James is a step too far. 

Eventually, Regulus sits back, wiping his eyes with the sleeve of his robe.

“Do you want to talk about it?” James asks, Regulus shaking his head. James stares at him a moment, “Jeez, Reg, you look exhausted, you’re sure you don’t want to talk?”

Regulus nods, “I just haven’t slept much, it’s fine.”

“Mm-mm, that’s not fine,” James shakes his head, “Are you tired?”

“I mean, yeah?” Regulus hesitantly answers, watching as James formulates some kind of plan.

James gets up, going over to Sirius’ bed and taking off the knitted blanket from home, the one they used on the train. He also goes over and grabs something out of his bag, which he managed to put down before sitting down. 

Regulus looks at him confused, trying to figure out what he’s doing.

“Take your shoes and robes off, get a little comfortable,” James urges, laying down with the book he took from his bag and patting the spot next to him, “Come lay down.”

Regulus listens, getting up to slip his shoes off, putting his robes, jumper, and bag on the chair by James’ bed. He walks over to the other side and sits next to him, loosening his tie but not quite laying down.

“No no, you have to lay down,” James protests, “I’m going to tell you about more Magical History, well, I say more but that last time I did that was this summer. Anyway, just lay down.”

Regulus sighs but listens laying down and pulling the blanket up to match how high it is on James’ side. He watches as James cards through the pages of the book, Regulus once again feeling tiredness tug at him once he’s wrapped in this blanket. He’ll have to ask James if he can steal it for a couple of days. It might help him get some sleep.

“How about wandlore history? It’s been my recent obsession,” James looks over. 

“I’ll listen,” Regulus answers, James smiling before starting to explain a scarily detailed history on wandlore. It doesn’t take long before it starts to lull him to sleep, even though not even 5 minutes ago he was sobbing into James’ shoulder. Granted, any sense of comfort would do it, considering over the past week he’s probably gotten about 6 hours of sleep in total. 

Even with the dried tears around his eyes and the hum of anxiety in his ear, Regulus settles into getting a little rest. A little rest turns into a little sleep, swearing he won’t stay long.

Although, soon enough he’s knocked out.


	70. Slug Club

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i need to remind you before this chapter: regulus IS a 15 year old boy. a very respectful one, but still 15. that's all have a nice day

Regulus pulls on the last piece of his suit, checking in the mirror to make sure his hair isn’t a complete mess. Slug Club: The closest thing he’s going to get to Black family dinners. At least he only has to wear a suit.

He triple-checks that the chain around his neck isn’t visible, because Slughorn is very nosy and he refuses to take it off entirely. Slughorn has already asked him a million questions about this summer. Although, Regulus is sure today is going to be filled with those, and the rest of the group gets the pleasure of hearing him dodge them. 

He decides that is as good as he’s going to get, heading out of his dorm and down through the Common Room. The second he walks out of the painting he’s met with James. Of course he’s there, James is absolutely everywhere. He’s in a coffee brown suit, a graham pattern all across it, akin to what his dad would wear, with his hair still a mess.

“Hi Reg!” He greets, falling into step with him, “Are you ready?”

“Never,” Regulus deadpans, “Weird seeing you in a suit.”

“You’ve seen me in this before,” James points out, “All of last year, and the year before that, and the year before that.”

“I didn’t live with you,” Regulus argues, “Now it’s weird.”

“Alright fair,” James concedes, “Do you know if we got any new kids? Has Slughorn told you?”

“I think he mentioned it once, but I don’t remember if there’s anyone new,” Regulus answers, “And this is the first dinner, so probably not.”

“Yeah, good point,” James nods, “But we need people to replace the Seventh Years last year, and we didn’t have one last week. There were 2, right?”

“Mhm, but two fewer people makes us 10,” Regulus says.

“I guess we’ll have to see,” James shrugs, “Maybe meeting new people will help us be interrogated less.”

“Hopefully,” Regulus comments, both of them walking in relative silence the rest of the way to Slughorn’s office, James knocking on the door. It opens a couple of seconds later, Slughorn’s beaming face on the other side.

“James! Regulus! Wonderful to see you both,” He steps aside, “Come in, come in.”

Regulus follows behind James, walking into the nearly empty room, save for what looks like a couple of new kids.

“Here, come meet the new additions to our table tonight,” Slughorn says, walking the two of them over to two unfamiliar faces. One of them looks around the normal age Slughorn tends to recruit, around 14, while the other looks about 12. The former is standing confidently, straight up so her dress is taught against her skin, while the other is crouched in on herself, very uncomfortable. Her dress reflects how young she looks, sequins lining the neckline, which goes halfway up her neck.

The older one steps forward, holding her hand out to James, “Dahlia Flores, nice to meet you.”

James shakes it, “James Potter, nice to meet you too.”

She moves to shake Regulus’ hand. “Black, Regulus Black,” He greets, watching her eyebrow quirk at the greeting. Well, he knows she’s not his type of pureblood, or she wouldn’t have been surprised with him leading with his last name. That’s just custom when you’re greeting someone younger than you, he didn’t even think about it.

“Julia, say hello, I promise they don’t bite,” Slughorn stifles a laugh, “Well, at least these two don’t.”

She looks up, looking at both of them a moment before giving them a small wave, “I’m Julia Moreno.”

“Julia has a particularly impressive talent in Herbology, as has been present recently in her excellent potions ingredients,” Slughorn notes, “She’ll be our youngest this year, Second Year.”

“Second Year? Damn, even I wasn’t invited in Second Year,” James comments.

“I was,” Regulus looks over at him, “I was invited in my First Year.”

“You don’t count,” James argues, drawing a small smile out of Regulus before he looks back to Slughorn.

“I was just having the girls help me with seating,” Slughorn says, walking over to the table, “Do you two have any preferences? I’m assuming next to one another, correct?”

“Yeah, I want to be next to Reg, and Lily, but I know you’re going to say no,” James answers, walking over to the table to look at where everyone is put.

“That I am, my boy,” Slughorn laughs, “I don’t think Lily would appreciate that much.”

“I think she would appreciate it _very_ much,” James answers, making his way around the table, “Snape next to Emma? You’re out for blood, Professor.”

“Oh, are they next to one another?” He asks, backtracking to see what James is looking at, “That will end horribly, where can I put him instead?” 

“Here, hold on,” James grabs Snapes’ name card, starting to rearrange the ones on the table. He takes one more circle around once he’s done before looking to Slughorn, “How is that?”

Slughorn peruses the names, nodding in approval as he does, “I actually approve of your orientation, James, I’m surprised.”

“See? I know how to orient a table,” James boasts, “ _And_ I didn’t put myself next to Lily, took a lot of self-restraint, but I didn’t.” 

Regulus walks over to the table to see what they’re talking about, starting at Slughorn’s seat and walking all the way around. The order is pretty much what he would expect: Lily, Cynthia, him, James, Emma, Adrien Adler, Snape, Evan, Louis Gage, Dahlia, Wendy Slinkhard, and Julia. He naturally has the youngest next to him, and Lily pretty much lives in the spot on his other side. Everyone else is just a game of who gets along.

A knock at the door calls everyone’s attention over, Slughorn going over to answer it. On the other side are Snape, Evan, Adrien, and Louis, although none of them look like they came together. Slughorn gives them his grandiose greeting before inviting them in.

“The lot of you find your seats, minimize the confusion as everyone else shuffles in,” He directs them, Regulus grabbing the seat he’s conveniently standing right next to. James sits next to him, the other 6 of them in the room finding their own seats.

“I don’t think these two new kids are ready for this,” James whispers to him, “Neither of them is pureblood, right?”

“I don’t think so,” Regulus answers just as quietly, “The first was surprised I started with my last name.”

“Was she? I didn’t see,” James glances up at Dahlia, who is making small talk with Louis next to her, “She doesn’t look it if that makes sense.”

“She’s wearing flats, she’s not,” Regulus answers, James nodding.

“That’s what did it, yep,” He looks back to the door as two more people walk in, “No Cynthia and no Lily yet, weird, they’re normally here before me.”

“You’re normally late,” Regulus points out.

“Fair.”

Wendy and Emma grab their seats, Emma immediately joining in their conversation. 

“Hello you two,” She greets, “How’s it going? Do I need to beat up James for you, Reg?” 

“Hey! I’m very nice to Reg,” James protests, “Right, Reg?” 

Regulus nods.

“See?” James points back to Regulus as he looks to Emma, “He agrees.”

Emma rolls her eyes, “You two are a disaster pairing, why are you sitting right next to one another?” 

“Because Reg is my favorite person ever,” James laughs, “You were almost sitting next to Snape.”

“Oh, no I fucking wasn’t,” Emma shakes her head, “I cannot sit next to him without someone dying, and it wouldn’t be me.”

“You’re welcome for switching the seating then,” James playfully pokes back, Regulus looking back when he hears Slughorn start to greet someone else. He sees Cynthia and Lily in the doorway, seemingly having come in with one another. His eyes get caught on something.

On Cynthia.

She doesn’t like to dress super nice to these dinners, but apparently, that’s out the window tonight. She’s wearing a light purple A-line dress, flowing down from her waist to just above her knees. The top is off the shoulder, with a sweetheart neckline that’s lower than he’s ever seen her wear. 

It’s _low_ , and God is she pretty.

Regulus quickly looks away as he feels his entire face heat up, all the way to the tips of his ears. He hears Emma stifle a laugh, but James doesn’t quite catch on as fast. 

“Reg? Are you doing alright there?” James asks, Regulus looking up at him. He doesn’t even have to answer, James looking from his beet-red face to Cynthia and putting the pieces together. “Oh, _oh_ ,” James laughs, lightly elbowing him, “Got a little bit of a problem there?”

“Shut up,” Regulus mumbles, not looking back as Cynthia and Lily walk to their seats, “Talk to me.”

“Uhh, hmm,” James thinks for a topis, “How about- No, that’s no good.”

“It doesn’t matter what,” Regulus presses.

“Ok, how about,” He leans over to look around Regulus, “How nice you’re looking tonight, Evans.”

“Shove it, Potter,” Lily shoots back, “Ask me out again and it’ll earn you a punch in the nose.”

“Ok ok, let’s start eating before the two of you get in a fight,” Slughorn interrupts them, sitting down and tapping on the table. In comes three house elves, each floating 4 plates behind them, with the exception of one of them, who has 5. They set all of them on the table in front of everyone, Regulus finally tearing his eyes away from James and facing back forward.

“Hi Reggie,” Cynthia greets, less enthusiastic than she normally is.

“Hi,” He quickly answers, only glancing up at her. He’s making _such_ a fool of himself right now, he even hears her softly laugh as she turns to Lily.

She doesn’t say anything else though, just starting to pick at the food in front of her. Regulus picks up his fork but doesn’t eat anything.

“So, I think a little introduction is in order,” Slughorn says, dragging everyone out of their conversations, “Everyone, these are our two wonderful new members, Julia and Dahlia. Be nice to them, please, I’m looking at you, Emma.”

“I’m nice to all the new members, what do you mean?” Emma responds, “Not a single one of them has been scared of me.”

“Not one,” Slughorn sarcastically agrees.

“Although, I will admit that Reg scared _me_ when I first joined,” She leans around James to look at Regulus, “You just have a scary demeanor sometimes, Reg.”

Regulus looks at her confused, he’s very well aware that he is _not_ a scary person.

“You found Reg _scary_ ?” James asks, shocked, “Are you _that_ weak?”

“Woah woah, don’t go calling me weak James, and Reg is a little scary sometimes,” Emma argues.

“I have never found him scary a day in my life.”

“Ok, but you live with him, that’s different.”

And there it is.

“Speaking of,” Slughorn cuts into their conversation, looking at Regulus, “You haven’t told me much of this summer, Regulus, I’m interested.”

He shrugs, “Nothing much you don’t already know.”

“Hm, if you say so,” Slughorn muses, not getting to inquire anymore before someone speaks up. 

“Professor,” Dahlia starts, calling Slughorn’s attention, “Might I ask what everyone else’s names are? I don’t believe we’ve been introduced to them as they have to us.”

“Of course, of course, thank you for reminding me,” Slughorn looks at Lily first before going around the circle, “This is Lily, Cynthia, Regulus and James, who you’ve met, Emma, Adrien, Severus, Evan, Louis, and Wendy. All of which, as I’ve told you, carry a special something that tells me they’ll go quite far.”

She eyes Regulus a moment, for some reason choosing him to be enthralled with.

“I see you looking at Regulus, you’re welcome to talk to him,” Slughorn laughs, “I swear, no matter what Emma says he’s not scary.”

“Ok, I say one thing and I’m made fun of for it,” Emma huffs, “This is your fault, James.”

“Hey, take me out of this,” James stops her.

“Hush with the bickering you two,” Slughorn shushes them, “Let other people talk.”

“Sorry, sorry,” James apologizes, going back to his dinner.

“Regulus,” Dahlia calls his attention over, “Why did you say your last name first when you introduced yourself? Seemed a little- arrogant, I’m not sure.”

Regulus shakes his head, “It’s formality.”

“Formality how?”

“When you introduce yourself to someone younger,” Slughorn explains for him, “Last name comes first with families like Regulus’.” 

“Why is that, Professor? Why just someone younger?” She questions.

“I believe it has something to do with respect, is that right, Regulus?” Slughorn looks over at him, “All of those traditions trip me up, I can never keep track of them.”

Regulus nods.

“I commit some of it to memory,” He laughs, the table falling silent for a moment before Snape speaks up.

“Vanity,” He says, a little aggressively, Emma looking over. “How has Quidditch been going, you know, with your beater?”

“Hm?” She questions, “Excuse me? Jack is just fine, last time I checked.”

“Not him, the other one,” Snape annoyedly corrects her, “Word has it he wants to quit.”

Emma almost chokes on her drink, “Where did you hear that?”

“Not quite sure, through the grapevine, possibly,” Snape answers, a slight smirk on his face. 

“Are you lying to me?” Emma challenges, “Professor, have you heard about this?”

“I haven’t heard anything of Gabriel quitting,” Slughorn shakes his head, “You’re sure you heard that right, Severus?”

“I heard that as well,” Louis says, “Well, less I heard and more I know, he’s a friend of mine.”

“Ok well,” She leans over to look at Regulus, “Reg, we’re probably spending our practices this week finding a new beater, this is ridiculous.”

“Just don’t invite James,” Regulus replies, “He broke my wrist at my tryouts.”

“How do I _always_ get sucked into this?”

“Wait, he broke your wrist?” Dahlia cuts in, “Apologies, I’m just a little confused.”

“Well, it was kind of Emma’s-”

“It was _not_ my fault,” Emma stops him.

“Ok, it was completely my fault,” James laughs, “I was flying around like an idiot and accidentally flew right into Reg. I didn’t know him at the time, but I did knock him right to the ground. It’s ok, he’s forgiven me.”

“Ok ok, shut up James, I’m trying to figure out what I’m going to do when I’m _down a beater_ ,” Emma stresses, “I could recruit one of you,” She looks at Cynthia.

“Don’t even try Emma, I refuse to play Quidditch,” Cynthia denies, crossing her arms. Regulus forces himself to turn back to James. 

“Don’t play Quidditch, it does horrible things to people” Lily chimes in, “Just look at those three.”

James and Emma jump in at the same time.

“Don’t be mean to Reg.”

“Be nice to Reg.”

Slughorn laughs, letting the table fall silent again before pointing at Regulus’ plate, “You haven’t eaten much, not hungry, my boy?”

Regulus shakes his head, “Sorry.”

“No need to be sorry, just making conversation,” Slughorn answers, directing his attention elsewhere to inquire about someone else’s life.

Cynthia turns to him, “You need to eat something.”

He glances up, rather favoring to look at the food he hasn’t eaten, “I’m not hungry, it’s fine.”

“Look at me,” She demands, a tone Regulus _never_ hears out of her. He looks up at her, only then noticing she’s wearing earrings. And he knows those earrings, she has a full set of constellation ones she rotates through. 

That’s Leo.

Great, well he’s completely blushing again, totally missing what she said to him.

“Did you hear a word I said?” She asks, sounding less annoyed than her sentence would let on. 

He shakes his head, “Sorry.”

“It’s fine,” She gives him a small smile, “I said you need to eat something before you get sick. Or at least try to.”

He nods, poking at his food before taking a couple of bites. He hears Lily and Cynthia whisper something to one another, not getting to hear the conversation before Slughorn drags him back to reality.

“Regulus,” He calls, Regulus looking up. “Are you still playing piano?”

Regulus nods. He knows Slughorn, and he knows this conversation is going to be long.

“How is that going?” He asks, “Do the Potters have a piano?”

Regulus nods, suppressing a sigh before starting to explain, “They do, recently I’ve been working on…”


	71. Best Option

Finally, Slughorn excuses them all from the table, Regulus standing and taking about two steps before being stopped. 

“Regulus, I have a favor to ask you,” Slughorn gestures for him to follow him, “Come here, let’s let everyone filter out.”

He follows Slughorn over to his desk in the corner of the room, which is really just a stockpile for party plans and dinner layouts. Regulus takes a seat across from him, catching one last glance of Cynthia as she walks out of the room. He’s not going to stop thinking about that for _weeks._

“So, Regulus,” Slughorn starts, pulling out a sheet of paper, “Cynthia, Lily, and Remus are all doing a Prefect round on Friday, and typically Alexander finish that set, however, he told me he has to go home for something on Thursday and will be gone all weekend. Would it be a problem for you to fill in?”

“What time?”

“It starts at 8, ends at 10, I believe?” Slughorn scans the paper, “Yes, that’s right. Is there any issue with that? You can always say no,”

“That’s fine,” Regulus nods, “I can fill in.”

“Thank you so much,” Slughorn smiles, “You know, if you hadn’t said you didn’t want it, I would have given you Prefect. You were my first pick, my boy.”

“I wouldn’t have wanted it,” Regulus replies, “Thank you, though.”

“Oh, and I have to ask,” He leans his arms on the table, “Is something going on between you and Cynthia? You two didn’t talk much today.”

Regulus stiffens, “Oh, nothing. It just was a long week last week.”

“Hm, odd that you two weren’t talking, though,” He looks at him skeptically, “I’ll take what you said, though, I trust you two are close enough to spend healthy time apart. That’s all I needed you for, though, you can ask Cynthia for the details about Friday. As for right now, I still think James is standing outside of that door.”

Regulus lets out a small laugh, “He probably is.”

“Let’s see, James!” Slughorn yells, the door opening and James peeking his head back in.

“Hi!” He waves, “I’m waiting for Reg.”

“Well, I’ll let him go with you,” Slughorn laughs, “I’ll see you tomorrow, Regulus, we’ll have to see what comes of that beater position.”

Regulus nods, standing up, “Thank you, Professor, I’ll see you tomorrow.”

Slughorn waves as Regulus walks up to James, who bids his goodbyes to Slughorn before they start back down the hallway. 

“So, are you going back to your dorm?” James asks as if Regulus really has a choice.

“I don’t really have a choice?” Regulus puzzles, confused, “It’s Monday?”

“Yeah, but like, we have a fifth bed, you could crash with us if you ever wanted to,” James says, “That’s just a general invitation too, by the way. But I guess not today, you don’t have your robes and you’re all dressed up.”

“Mhm,” Regulus nods, “But I’ll keep it in mind.”

“Good!” James smiles, “We’d love to have you- Well, I would, but that’s all that matters.”

Regulus idly nods again, letting James start to ramble on about Quidditch. He isn’t really listening, he’s busy figuring out how he’s going to tell Cynthia that she has to spend 2 hours with him, and he’s trying to find out how _he’s_ going to do that. Especially after tonight, there’s no way he can talk to her without acting like a complete idiot. 

And she doesn’t deserve to have to deal with him.

He has a feeling he’s not going to get much sleep.

***

Regulus walks onto the Pitch, seeing a collection of kids notably not in Quidditch uniforms standing by Emma. It’s only Wednesday and she’s already holding tryouts, that must be why she asked him to come early. 

“Reg! Perfect,” She exclaims as she meets him halfway, “Sorry I didn’t mention that you’re helping me with tryouts today, Jack is sick and you’re my next best option.”

“I’m your next best option?” Regulus questions, seriously doubting his ability to help at all in this scenario. 

“Well, you would have had to help anyway, because they need to defend someone and it will probably be you, but that’s not until the end,” She explains, “But yes, you’re the best I’ve got, you know more than enough about the game, you’ll be fine.”

Regulus looks at her skeptically. 

“I’ll walk you through it,” She assures him as they walk up to the group of new kids. She sighs before turning to all of them, Regulus standing off to the side and just behind her. He scans the group of 5 Slytherins, recognizing only two of them. One is a kid he doesn’t really know, rather one that he’s just seen around. The other he knows of a little better, Samael Yaxley. He’s wanted Regulus’ position on the team from the second he got it.

Fantastic. 

“So, thank you all for coming, unfortunately, our previous beater quit with zero notice so I’m sorry for the late planning but it is what it is. We’re going to start with some basic flying drills, then we’ll hand out bats and do strength, then precision, then guarding,” She lists, “That should be it, we’ll probably pick which of you will be on the team by tonight, to give you enough time to clear your schedule for practice Friday. Does that sound good?”

Everyone nods, Emma sighing before glancing back at Regulus.

“Oh, I should probably- ok,” She gestures back to Regulus, “This is Regulus, he’s our Seeker. He’s going to help me out today because our other Beater can’t make it. He’s also going to be the person you’re guarding, it’s an immediate fail if you knock him out of commission, just don’t do it.”

“What if it’s not our fault?” Samael questions. 

“It is,” Emma quips back, “No questions, it definitely will be.”

Samael rolls his eyes but laughs it off, easing Emma’s visible tension as well. Regulus feels like it wasn’t a joke, though.

“Alright, stretching, let’s go,” Emma pulls her arm across her chest, Regulus instinctively following after her. The other five catch on, Emma counting them through their stretching warm-up. The only one who isn’t absolutely clueless as to what comes next is Samael, but that just makes him far from humble.

It’s going to be a _long_ afternoon.

***

After a painful 2 hours of trying out with 5 kids, several injuries, and one kid completely out of commission, they’re finally completely done. Regulus only narrowly got skimmed by a bludger a few times, although he got nailed pretty good a couple of times. He _hates_ being _anywhere_ near bludgers, so his hands are pretty violently shaking. Other than that, though, he came out majorly unscathed, not counting the huge bruises some of those are going to leave.

He follows after Emma, landing in the stands and grabbing a seat next to her as the remaining 4 of them flying around the pitch, 3 of them toying with a Quaffle and Samael playing with the practice Snitch.

“You doing good Reg?” Emma asks, “Hands a little shaky?” 

He holds out his hand, which is more than just a little shaky. “Yeah,” He says through heavy breaths.

“Is your bag with mine? In the locker room?” She asks, Regulus nodding and Emma jumping on her broom and flying over to where their stuff is. She comes back a minute later, handing him his bag and taking out a clipboard and a piece of paper from hers. 

“Thanks,” He takes his bag from her and grabs out his water, drinking enough of it to at least feel a little less worn out. It’s a struggle to keep it from spilling, though, but he doesn’t really care. 

“So, I think we really only have one good option,” She says, twirling the pen in her hand as she looks at her notes, “I think we’re kind of fucked.”

Regulus shrugs, looking over at what she has written. Most of it is literally just scribbles to make her look busy, only a couple of actual skill notes and one X through the kid who ended quitting because he got a little banged up.

“These notes are kind of bullshit to make me look busy, sorry Reg,” She laughs, “But, I mean, I don’t know if we can train anyone mid-year, since we compete in a month. I think Yaxley is the best we’ve got.”

“Is it temporary?” Regulus asks, “Just for the year?”

“I’m not sure yet,” She sighs, “I mean, maybe, unless they fit well. Shit, this is obnoxious. We’re _so_ fucked against Ravenclaw, aren’t we?”

“I think we’ll be fine,” Regulus counters.

“We can only do what we can do, right?” She circles Samael’s name, looking at Regulus for his approval, to which he just shrugs. Emma sighs, blowing the whistle to call everyone over.

She looks back to Regulus as they all land in front of her, “Let’s hope I don’t regret this.”

***

Regulus scans the crows of people walking back from their last class in front of him, looking for one person. He’s filling in during the Prefect rounds tomorrow, and he still has yet to talk to her about it. 

He finally spots the familiar head of long blonde hair, rushing up beside her and immediately catching her attention.

“Oh, hey Reggie!” She excitedly greets, being the exact opposite of his anxious energy. He goes to tell her what he needs to, but he doesn’t actually say anything, the words he wanted to say are all suddenly jumbled up in his head. She looks at him confused for a moment, “Is there something you need?”

“I- I’m, For, uh,” He tries to find the sentence he’s grasping at, but it comes out as more of a stammer for words. He’s messing this up so bad. He had to tell her _one_ thing, _one_ sentence and he can’t even force that out.

“Is everything alright?” She asks, more concerned than before. He just shakes his head. It’s not worth it.

“Sorry,” He says, “Nothing.”

He goes to walk off, Cynthia catching up to him and putting a hand on his shoulder. 

“Are you sure?” She presses, “You didn’t need anything? I’m not in a rush if you have something to talk to me about.”

He shakes his head again, “It’s nothing.”

“You’re positive?” She asks again, a little more defeated this time. She’s almost pleading with him, but he feels like he’s forgotten how to speak.

He nods, “Sorry.”

“Well, if you need anything let me know,” She gives him a weak smile before looking back and walking off to talk to someone else. 

He _cannot_ believe he just did that.

Every possible thing she’s thinking about him right now seems to hit him at once, and suddenly the crowd is too big, and all of these people are too close. He reroutes to the first place he thinks of, heading over to Gryffindor tower.

He recites the password to the painting, one he’s memorized from how many times he’s heard James say it. He ignores the weird stares from everyone sitting in the Common Room, knowing at least Sirius is in his dorm. He doesn’t have a last period, and he _never_ goes to his Study period. Regulus knocks on the door, as non-frantically as he can, Sirius opening it a second later, still in almost his full robes. 

“Hey Reg,” Sirius greets, confused, “What’re you doing here?”

Regulus tries to respond but can’t, although that’s enough information for Sirius. He steps back and invites him in, grabbing a chair and pulling it up to the side of Remus’ bed, where Regulus looks up to see Remus already laying there, half asleep. Regulus takes a seat in the chair, watching Sirius flop back on top of Remus, who wraps his arms around him.

“What happened, Reg?” Sirius prompts, “You look like you just killed someone.”

Regulus shakes his head, “I- It’s nothing.”

“Ok, first of all, not nothing,” Sirius argues, “You wouldn’t come knocking on our dorm room door immediately after school ended if it was nothing.”

“Sorry,” He instinctively apologizes, regretting coming in here.

“No- I didn’t mean it like that,” Sirius sighs, “Let me up again, love.”

Remus unwraps his arms from around Sirius, who gets up and gestures for Regulus to follow him. Regulus does, walking over to sit with him on Sirius’ bed. Sirius pulls closed the curtain just on the side where Remus is.

“Tell me what’s up,” Sirius says, leaning back on his hands. 

Regulus takes a deep breath, “Slughorn asked me to fill in Prefect rounds tomorrow-”

“Even though you’re not a Prefect?”

“Mhm, he wishes I was one,” Regulus nods before continuing his explanation, “I had to tell Cynthia and I just- I didn’t-” He gestures to try and tell Sirius he couldn’t say anything, Sirius getting the picture.

“You didn’t get to tell her?” He clarifies, Regulus nodding. “Because…” He trails off, clearly already knowing why.

Regulus annoyedly sighs, “Yes, because.”

“You _need_ to get over it, Reg,” Sirius responds, “I’m not even trying to be mean, but she’s never going to even _like_ you if you never talk to her.”

“I tried-” 

“Because you needed something,” He cuts him off, “It’s been almost a month, you’re being a little ridiculous, she just cares about you. And you know how much it’s probably killing her that you’re not talking to her?”

“I know,” Regulus replies, really not ready for Sirius to give him the same lecture he’s giving himself. 

“If you know then why won’t you talk to her?” He questions, “If you know then why do you keep giving her the cold shoulder?”

“I-” Regulus struggles for an answer, “I- I can’t.”

“Help her understand that,” Sirius tells him, “She’ll never understand why you’re suddenly blowing her off for doing nothing if you don’t tell her.”

Regulus just stares at him, knowing Sirius is right but also knowing he is absolutely not capable of doing that. Their conversation is interrupted by the door opening, James and Peter walking into the room.

“-So I was thinking that might work, right?” James says to Peter, who nods. James doesn’t keep going when he sees Regulus, instead smiling at him, “Hi Reg!”

Regulus gives him a small wave.

“What’s going on over here?” James asks, jumping on the bed next to both of them.

“That’s all you’ve got for me?” Peter asks, laughing at James.

“Oh- Actually, no it isn’t,” James gets back up, holding a hand out to Regulus, “Would you mind helping us with something? It’s fine if you’re busy, but we would greatly appreciate your knowledge of the Slytherin Common Room.”

Regulus looks at him skeptically but takes his hand and gets up, letting James lead him over to sit on Peter’s bed.

“Reg,” Sirius calls, “I’ll tell Remus about tomorrow for you.”

“Thank you,” Regulus answers, watching Sirius get up and go back to laying on Remus. Regulus looks back to James and Peter, where James is seemingly very ready to tell him a plan for something. 

“So, are you ready for our master plan?” James excitedly asks. 

Regulus sighs but nods, James jumping right into a detailed plan about how he is going to start a prank war with the Slytherins and get Snape back for doing something Regulus doesn’t quite catch. For as difficult as it is to keep up with him, James does provide a really good distraction.

And at this point, Regulus will take what he can get.


	72. Prefect Rounds

Regulus walks up to the Gryffindor portrait, seeing Cynthia, Lily, and Remus all already there. None of them look particularly thrilled to see him, although Remus never looks particularly thrilled about anything. Lily is staring daggers into him, though. Shoot.

“Hi Regulus,” Remus greets, “Thank you for filling in, although I’m sure Slughorn didn’t give you much of an option.”

Regulus shrugs.

“These rounds in the Grand Staircase always suck, it’s just walking up mass amounts of stairs,” Remus explains, “We normally do it in pairs, and we were thinking you can come with me and Cynthia will go with Lily?”

Regulus nods, “That sounds good.”

“Perfect,” Remus looks to Lily and Cynthia, “Are we ready?”

“Mhm, I think we are,” Lily responds, “We’ll stay on this side over here, you guys can take over there.”

“Alright, come on Regulus,” Remus gestures for Regulus to follow him, the two groups splitting up from one another. Regulus and Remus walk around quietly for a couple of minutes, Regulus getting an understanding of exactly where he’s supposed to be going. It’s really just a looping path they go in. 

Remus speaks up first, “So, I guess we should probably talk, right?”

Regulus shrugs. He’s only going to talk if Remus does, he’s certainly not pushing the conversation. 

“So, I will have to ask you when we’re not walking around, but James was telling me quite a while ago that you have a photo album of older photos when you and Sirius were younger,” Remus starts, and Regulus nods. “I’ve seen so few baby pictures of Sirius, if you don’t mind I’d love to look through a couple of them.”

“I’ll bring it next time,” Regulus says, “James got a kick out of it.”

“Sounds like him,” Remus laughs, “He told me there’s a picture with Sirius missing a front tooth.”

Regulus nods.

“Sirius has seen a ton of my embarrassing pictures from when I was a kid, I think it’s just fair,” He smiles, pausing for a moment before saying something else, “How long have you been playing piano?”

_ This  _ is a topic Regulus is more comfortable with. “12 years, since I was 3.”

“Goddamn, well it makes sense why you’re so good,” Remus marvels, “My mum taught me some piano, but not much. I haven’t played consistently since I was around 10, but I’ve been around it my whole life. She preferred Beethoven.”

“Do you know which period?” Regulus questions, Remus raising an eyebrow. “That was a niche question, sorry.”

“No, it’s fine, but I have no idea,” Remus shrugs, “I know so little about any of that, I just know what piece she used to play all the time, that’s about it.”

“What was it?”

“Piano Sonata number 24,” Remus tells him. 

“That’s in his second period I believe, I like that piece,” Regulus remarks.

“Damn, you know that off the top of your head?”

“Mhm, I have a lot of classical composer knowledge,” Regulus nods, “Beethoven, Mozart, and Chopin specifically. Some Bach too.”

“I know all those names, but I know pretty much nothing about them,” Remus laughs.

Regulus smiles, “Those are all big ones, I’d be surprised if you didn’t. I know some small classical composers, but I played mostly their music as a kid.”

“Can you play any other instruments?” Remus asks. 

Regulus shrugs, “I’ve tried my hand violin, but I wasn’t any good.”

“Before I say this I’m sorry, I know nothing about music,” Remus prefaces, “But is it easier to learn a different instrument when you already know one? I mean, you know notes and everything, right?”

“A little,” Regulus replies, “It helps, but different instruments are in different keys. It’s easy to go to instruments in the same family.”

“What’s an instrument family?”

“They’re a group of instruments that function similarly, kind of,” Regulus explains, “Piano- Well, piano is kind of in the middle. There is a keyboard family, but it’s a little small.”

“And then what does it mean when you say key?” Remus asks, “Sorry, this is a lot of questions.”

“It’s fine, I don’t mind talking about it,” Regulus pauses a second, “It’s weird to explain, though.”

“I’m listening, if you want to tell me,” Remus offers, “We have all night.”

Regulus decides they have nothing better to do, contemplating where he is going to start a moment before speaking.

“Every instrument is pitched differently…”

***

“What’s got your tongue tonight?” Lily asks, Cynthia being pulled out of her thoughts and back to reality, “Something up?”

“You know what’s up,” Cynthia responds, barely glancing over at Lily.

“Regulus?” Lily clarifies, Cynthia nodding. “Well, no better time to talk through it than right now. You haven’t told me  _ that _ much, you know.”

“Because there isn’t anything,” She shoots back, “He hasn’t talked to me since I saw him over break, with the exception of when we  _ have _ to talk during classes.”

“You’re lucky he’s related to Sirius, or else I would have chewed him out a week ago,” Lily comments.

“Don’t do that,” Cynthia warns before sighing, “I know there’s something wrong, I can tell. But he won’t tell me, and I’ve tried everything I know he likes doing. I’ve asked him to study with me, I’ve asked him to come over and hang out, I’ve asked him if he wants to go to Hogsmeade, shit, at this point I’m asking if he wants to  _ sit with me at dinner _ because he never does.”

“And you have no idea what’s wrong?” Lily questions.

“None,” She shakes her head, “And he won’t tell me at  _ all _ .”

“I mean, ignoring how he’s feeling for a second,” Lily says, “How are you feeling?”

“Horrible,” Cynthia replies, “Fuck, Lils, he’s my  _ best friend _ , and all of a sudden he won’t talk to me? I feel like I did something wrong, but I just can’t figure it out and it’s been killing me for a month.”

“I don’t think you did anything wrong,” Lily counters, “It just happened all the sudden over break, something must have changed and I don’t think it was your fault.”

“I don’t even care if I have to take the blame for something that wasn’t my fault,” Cynthia sniffles, biting back tears, “I just miss talking to him, I was so excited to see him when we came back. And just- every time I try and extend a hand he pulls back further. Fuck, yesterday he  _ couldn’t _ talk to me, that hasn’t happened since we were 12.”

“Cynthia,” Lily breathes, although it doesn’t stop her. At this point, Cynthia is knee-deep in explaining what has been happening with Regulus.

“At this point, I’m sure he’s not going to dinner to avoid  _ me _ because he goes to breakfast at the crack of dawn and I’m walking into lunch as he’s walking out. We went from eating every meal together to not a single one, hell, we went from spending hours together to barely talking at all,” Cynthia wipes away tears, but doesn’t stop talking, “I just miss him so  _ much _ . And I try to tell myself that he’s the one treating me like shit but I just can’t get mad at him. At this point, I’m pleading with him to say yes to anything I suggest, but he never fucking does. Lily, what do I  _ do _ ?”

At this point, Cynthia is sobbing, Lily grabbing her arm and dragging her down a hallway that almost no one goes down. She pulls Cynthia into a hug, Cynthia burying her face in Lily’s shoulder. Lily lightly rubs her back, the two sitting there for a couple of minutes before Lily speaks, not moving back. 

“It’ll be alright,” Lily assures her, “Things will work themselves out, with or without me punching someone in the nose for you.”

“Don’t do that,” Cynthia replies, half laughing.

“I will if I have to,” Lily counters, “You sound like Remus telling me not to deck Sirius for something, I will do it.”

“I know you will,” Cynthia whispers, letting the silence fall over them a moment. 

She loves Lily, and she really appreciates how much she’s been sticking with when Cynthia rants about Regulus all the time, but she just wishes she had Regulus’ comfort, as backward as that is. She wants his odd, sometimes unhelpful, but always meaningful support, where she can feel how much he cares, even if he can’t articulate it. Lily is doing everything she can, but Cynthia doesn’t feel the same way about Lily that she does about Regulus. 

“Here, they won’t notice if we’re gone, let’s sit for a little bit,” Lily moves back, sliding down so she’s sitting on the floor against the wall. Cynthia sits down right next to her, fiddling with the sleeves on her robes. 

“What do I do?” Cynthia asks, looking over at Lily, “How do I fix it?”

“You’ve been doing everything you can, you’ve been giving him space but you’ve also been trying to reach out,” Lily says, “I mean, the only thing I can think of is pulling him aside and making him tell you.”

“When the hell am I going to be able to do that?” Cynthia challenges. 

Lily thinks for a moment, “Well, you didn’t hear it from me, but I think the guys are hanging out in the Common Room on Friday, you might be able to grab him then. And he’ll be drunk if that’s any help.”

“Actually, that’s very helpful,” Cynthia nods, “I don’t think I’m getting any information out of him is if he’s sober, so maybe that’ll do it enough just so I can find out what’s happening.”

“I’ll probably crash their party with Marlene, Dorcas, and Mary, so if you just want to come drink with us you can too.”

“We’ll see what happens,” Cynthia laughs, “And you know I don’t drink.”

“Weak,” Lily deadpans before laughing. They sit in comfortable silence for a moment before Lily asks, “Can I ask a horrible question?”

“I mean, go ahead,” Cynthia shrugs, “I’m sure I’ll hate it.”

“You will,” Lily agrees, “But what do you like about that boy, anyway? He just seems so- just alright. He’s very respectful and I absolutely adore when he’s in the boys’ dorm leveling them all out, but you like him to a different level.”

“Watch it, Lily,” Cynthia playfully warns, “But you don’t really know him. I mean, you’ve probably heard some from Sirius, you’ve seen him a couple of times, but you haven’t spoken to him, have you?”

“Mm-mm,” She shakes her head. 

“He’s just so- I don’t know, kind-hearted? Genuine? It’s hard to put a word to. But he’s just really enjoyable to be around, even if we aren’t always talking he has a very comforting presence. And just- The way he shows he cares is one of my favorite things about him. It’s always little things, but they’re just-” Cynthia sighs, “You’re really on a mission to make me sad again, aren’t you?”

“I’m sorry, I was just interested,” Lily apologizes, “We can stop talking about that now if you want.”

“Yeah, maybe not right now,” Cynthia wipes her eyes, “You’re making me miss him more.”

Lily rubs her shoulder, “Things will work themselves out, just trust it, Cynthia.”

Cynthia looks up, trying not to cry again. She would rather do that while  _ not _ making mandatory Prefect rounds around the castle, but it doesn’t seem her eyes want to listen to that. More tears roll down her cheeks, and she cups a hand over her mouth in an effort to not make any sound. Lily just wraps an arm around her shoulder, allowing her to lay her head on Lily’s shoulder. 

Cynthia hears footsteps grow closer down the hallway, both her and Lily looking over to see if they can figure out what’s going on. Of course, around the corner comes Regulus, looking a little shocked when he sees the two of them.

“Oh- uh, sorry,” He apologizes, looking back out into the hallway nervously, “Uh- Remus…” He trails off. 

“Does Remus need me?” Lily asks, and Regulus nods. “Does he need me right now?” 

Regulus nods again, more urgently this time. The look on his face tells Cynthia something happened, although she can’t figure what it could have been. 

Cynthia and Lily both get up, following Regulus over to one of the dark hallways on the other side of the room. On the floor is Remus, his knees pulled tightly to his chest and his head between them, his arms making sure no light gets through. 

“Remus,” Lily calls, leaning down next to him, “What’s wrong?”

“Migraine,” He mumbles, his voice stained, “Came out of nowhere.”

“Shit, ok,” She looks up at Regulus and Cynthia, “Can you two finish up for the last hour?”

They both glance at one another, nodding.

“Good enough for me,” Lily taps Remus on the shoulder, “Come on, we’re going back to the Common Room, the other two can hold everything down.”

Remus nods, grabbing Lily’s hand and letting her help him up. Lily unpins her Prefect pin and hands it to Regulus.

“Take this, in case anyone questions your authority, it doesn’t matter that it’s Gryffindor.”

Regulus takes it and pins it to his robes, Lily starting to walk off with a very clearly in pain Remus. The two walk off without another word, although it’s probably because Remus looked like he was not having a good time out here. Cynthia and Regulus look at one another, and before Cynthia can even say anything, Regulus suggests what she was hoping he wouldn’t. 

“Do you want to take one side?” He asks, his voice a little shaky. 

Cynthia sighs, “Yeah, that’s fine, I’ll meet you out by the Gryffindor portrait at 10, that’s what Lily and I normally do.”

He nods, walking off to start his route. He rubs the back of his neck as he does, Cynthia getting a glance of his shaking hand. She hopes that’s because of what happened with Remus and not her. Although, she feels like it’s her.

If only she knew what she did. 


	73. Veritaserum

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> cw: mentioned child abuse. it's in the veritaserum part and it's not a lot but i thought i'd warn for it

Regulus is the first into Transfiguration, his heart dropping when he sees the desks oriented in tables. Great, he absolutely despises group work, even _with_ Cynthia it’s bad, and things right now are not great. Not to mention Vaughn has been really pissed with him recently, and he’s sure it’s on Cynthia’s behalf. It’s completely warranted though, so he doesn’t say anything about it. 

James is at McGonagall’s desk, seemingly talking her ear off about something. She looks up when Regulus walks in, beckoning him over. 

“What are you-” James looks back, “Oh, hi Reg!” 

Regulus waves at him, walking up to McGonagall’s desk. She slides him a stack of two pieces of paper, Regulus picking them up and looking at them, slightly confused. 

“We’re doing group work today, but I supposed you would rather work alone,” McGonagall says, “You can always say no, but I tweaked the assignment to work for just you.”

Regulus nods, the sinking feeling he felt walking in the room slowly fading, “Thank you, Professor.”

“This table here,” She points at the only table not lumped into a group, “You’re welcome to work there. When I give instructions to the class just ignore me, everything should be written on there.”

Regulus nods again, heading over to set his stuff down. James, of course, follows after him, sliding in the chair next to him.

“How’s it going, Reg?” James asks, leaning one arm on the table.

“Alright,” Regulus replies, taking his seat as he takes out his textbook.

“Are you free tomorrow?” James asks, “We’re-”

“Hanging out, you told me,” Regulus finishes for him, stifling a laugh, “Twice.”

“I _have_?” James asks, just as surprised as the last time it happened, “When?” 

“Yesterday when you found me at lunch and at Quidditch Monday,” Regulus reminds him, “And Sirius told me.”

“Ok, well at least you won’t forget,” James laughs, “But I think we’re adding more people, at least Sirius said Marlene might join in, which automatically comes with Dorcas. You know them, though.”

Regulus nods, glancing over to see if McGonagall is planning on kicking James out, considering the room is starting to fill. 

“Don’t you have a class?” Regulus asks.

James shakes his head, “Nope, I have my last period free like Sirius does, but I normally go to our study period because Lily is in it. She didn’t come to classes today, though, so that’s no fun. And I’m not leaving unless McGonagall kicks me out, I have nowhere better to be, right?”

“Mhm,” Regulus nods, idly scanning through the assignment. It seems easy enough, just collecting some information and writing a parchment roll or two on it. Although, he’s sure everyone else’s assignment is much different. 

“I was talking to her about that,” James points at the paper, “She still feels bad about the thing in October, so I guess you’re getting extra special treatment. Although, she said she’s changed stuff for you before.”

Regulus nods, “Normally presentations, I don’t do well with those. As everyone in this class knows.”

“Eh, they’re not that important, and I’m sure Evan’s punch in the nose helped him forget-” James clamps a hand over his mouth, “I wasn’t supposed to tell you that.”

Regulus just stares at him, because _that’s_ what Sirius did that Evan was mad at him about. 

“Moving on,” James shakes it off, looking up as McGonagall walks over.

“Mr. Potter, do you have nowhere to be?” She questions, James happily shaking his head. “You don’t have a Study Hall right now?”

“No, I do, but they don’t take attendance, so I don’t have to go.”

“That’s horrible reasoning, Mr. Potter,” She sighs, “You cannot stay here if you have a class. Actually, you cannot stay here at all, all you’ll do is distract Mr. Black.”

“No, I can help him, I’ll be his partner,” James offers, “Reg actually loves me, it’s ok.”

“I’m sure he does, but you will not let him get any work done if you’re here,” McGonagall maintains, “You have to go to your Study Hall, or at least pretend to. I’ll see you tomorrow.”

James groans but gets up, “I’ll see you around, Professor, one day you’ll let me stay.”

“Continue dreaming, Mr. Potter,” She replies before walking off to the kid standing at her desk. James looks over at Regulus as he pushes his chair in. 

“I’ll see you tomorrow? 8 o’clock?” James asks, Regulus nodding. “Can’t wait! See you, Reg!” 

“Bye James,” Regulus waves as James makes his way out of the room. McGongagll starts her instructions, Regulus turning to look through what he should be doing. He can’t help but feel Cynthia’s eyes on him from the next table over, but he refuses to look over. He’d like to avoid awkward eye contact if at all possible. Especially with her right now.

He has a feeling he’s going to be decently hungover at Quidditch practice on Saturday. 

***

Regulus walks into the Gryffindor Common Room, seeing a collection of familiar faces already there, seemingly getting settled. Sirius, who has Remus laying on top of him, notices Regulus first. 

“Hey Reg,” Sirius greets, pointing at the cup on the corner of the coffee table, “That’s yours.”

“Thank you,” Regulus replies, picking up his cup and looking for a spot to take. With Remus, Sirius, and James on the couch and Peter on the sofa chair across from him, he takes the only open option and sits in the chair right next to him. It’s better than the floor he was on last time.

“So Reg,” James starts, “How are you doing?”

Regulus shrugs as he takes a sip of his drink. 

“Well, that’s not a ‘bad’, so that’s good,” James nods, “Just so you’re prepared, Sirius gets very touchy drunk, so he and Remus will be disgusting in about two hours.”

“Thanks, James,” Sirius deadpans, “Letting my brother know that.”

“He has a right to know before you two are locked at the lips,” James justifies, “Right, Peter?”

“Yeah,” Peter nods, “James has a point.”

“See?” James points back at Peter, “I have a point, how good is that?”

“Doesn’t take much, James,” Remus comments, laughing.

“Anyway anyway,” James brushes the comment off, looking over as someone comes down the stairs. A girl Regulus doesn’t recognize reaches the bottom of the girl’s staircase first, her dark brown hair tied back and two vials being held between her fingers. Behind her are Lily, Marlene, and Dorcas. 

“Oh good, the girls are here to crash our party,” Sirius deadpans before laughing, “It’s ok, I scored two bottles because I knew you would be here.”

“You know us too well,” Marlene gushes, walking over with Dorcas to sit on the floor between the couch and the chair Regulus is on. Marlene pours a cup for both of them, Lily and the girl Regulus doesn’t know taking their seats between the couch and the chair on the other side. 

“Is that what I think it is?” James asks, pointing at what the girl is holding. 

“Mhm, that it is,” She nods, “Should we do it now or later?”

“Now, the more I drink the more sexual my confessions are going to get,” Sirius says, “We have extra cups if you want to give us each a new cup so we aren’t sipping on that all night.”

“Good, because I don’t have enough for that,” She says, counting the number of people in the room and putting out a cup for each person. Regulus looks over at Sirius, attempting to silently ask him who that is and what they’re doing. Sirius catches his look, though.

“Oh, sorry Reg, you’re kind of in the dark right now,” Sirius points at the girl, “That’s Mary, and that’s Veritaserum. Mary has a ton of it for some reason.”

“My dad works with it and doesn’t care about my wellbeing, I’ve told you this before,” Mary tells him, “And hi, boy I’ve never met before, it’s nice to meet you.”

“This is Regulus, he’s my brother,” Sirius introduces, “There, now it’s the boy whose brother you know.”

“Wonderful,” Mary smiles, finishing what she’s doing, “Merry Christmas, guys, take a cup.”

Everyone grabs a cup off the table, Regulus not taking his at first. He does not want to be involved in this, but he would be hard-pressed to say anything. Of course, Marlene hands him his cup, and now he doesn’t really have a choice. 

“It’ll be fine, Reg,” Sirius assures him, “It’s written all over your face, you’ll be fine.”

Regulus looks at him skeptically, Sirius maintaining what he said as he drinks the new cup in his hand. Regulus sighs but does the same, not tasting the other liquid at all. He feels it, though, like someone is pushing down on all his common sense to keep things to himself. Although, that’s essentially what it is.

Sirius tosses the cup halfway across the room and looks down at Remus, smiling, “Damn, you look good tonight.”

“Are you sure it worked?” Remus asks, laughing and leaning up to give Sirius a kiss.

“Shit, that tastes gross,” James scrunches his face up, “Ew.”

“It doesn’t taste like anything, how does it taste gross?” Sirius asks. 

“I hate the taste of Firewhiskey, it’s gross,” James replies, “I don’t get you any of you drink it enjoyably.”

“Eh, the taste sucks a little,” Sirius admits, “It’s not that bad though. Anything tastes alright when you take that muffling shit as a kid.”

“What?” Remus looks up at him, “What does that mean?”

“My mum used to make this potion that worked like a silencing charm so we couldn’t talk,” Sirius explains, “They tasted like shit, to the point where she used to like, force it down my throat because I would not take it.”

“Whenever Sirius takes this he always says something horrifying,” Peter comments, “It’s every time.”

“Well, don’t make me take a truth serum if you don’t want the truth,” Sirius argues, sipping on his normal cup.

“Let’s throw a question out there,” Marlene thinks a moment, “Because we have a group of very loud mouths, I’m not talking about the person you are dating or have a very clear crush on.”

“James,” Sirius finishes for her, laughing while James rolls his eyes. 

“What is a crush you’ve had solely on looks?” She asks, “Nothing else about them, just like- stupid, you know?”

James clamps a hand over his mouth, clearly trying to fight saying his answer. Of course, it just draws more attention to him. 

Sirius points at him, “That’s not allowed, you have to say it.”

“It stays in this room, you know that,” Remus says, looking around, “It’s just us in here, too, Ravenclaw is holding a party today.”

“No, that’s the problem that it’s staying in this room,” James counters, his voice very tense.

“It’s someone here?” Remus asks James nodding. “Not who we know?”

“Yep, and nope,” James puts a hand over his mouth again, muffling a scream. Sirius is finding this absolutely hilarious, as is Marlene. 

“Tell us,” Remus presses, “Point at them.”

James points right at Regulus, closing his eyes and turning his head away. His hand stays over his mouth and the entire room goes quiet, Regulus staring at him, wide-eyed and mouth agape. He shakes himself out of it and takes another long sip of what’s in his cup.

“ _What?_ ” Sirius cuts through the silence, “You- Him- My _brother_?”

“I’m sorry! It was a while ago!” James apologizes, nervously laughing, “3 years ago, to be exact. I was 13, leave me alone!” 

“What the fuck,” Sirius mutters into his cup as he takes another sip.

“I’m sorry, Reg,” James apologizes again, “I don’t anymore if that’s any consolation.”

Regulus shrugs, smiling at how panicked James is about this, “I don’t really care, it was just a little surprising.” 

James sighs, “I’m remembering why I hate this.”

“Well, can anyone top that?” Marlene asks, “I think you win, James.”

“Ironically, I think Reg is the only one who is ever going to let me live that down,” James comments, “Someone ask a new question.”

“Well, I have to be careful with what I ask because all Sirius’ answers are _traumatic_ ,” Mary glares at Sirius.

“Look, if Reg wasn’t so quiet, he’d be telling stories that are just as bad,” Sirius argues, “Ask whatever you want, just know what your answer is going to be.”

“Fine, ok,” Mary thinks a moment, looking around at everyone else for some input before thinking of something, “Actually, I have one. What is the dumbest fear you have?”

“That’s a stupid question,” Sirius replies, “And ladybugs, I hate them.”

Mary looks at him in slight shock, James just laughing. “Fucking ladybugs?”

“Mhm,” Sirius nods, “They remind me of my mum for some reason, and they’re fucking terrifying.”

“They remind you of your mother?” James questions, “Elaborate on that.”

“She loved ladybugs for no reason, and I always hated them as a kid,” Sirius explains, “She used to have like, these little dead frozen ones? I would tell her I didn’t want to look at it, that it freaked me out. Guess how that one went for me. Hint, I have a scar from it.”

“Always traumatic,” Peter shakes his head, “And- Ok this is embarrassing, and I’m _not anymore_ , but I used to be scared of rats.”

“You used to be scared- How does that work?” James questions, shaking his head, “I should stop being surprised, we always end up revealing the weirdest things.”

“You think,” Regulus deadpans, staring right at him. 

“Stop!” James whines, “I thought we got over that!”

“I mean, in the same vein as Peter, I’ve grown out of it but I used to be scared of healers,” Remus laughs, “Guess how that went for me.”

“I’m scared of blood,” Mary admits, “Not like, just the blood, but people bleeding scares the shit out of me.”

“James, how about you tell us yours?” Sirius playfully jeers, clearly knowing whatever James is going to say. 

“I’m afraid of the dark,” James cringes, “Ow, that was embarrassing.”

“You seem like you would be,” Marlene nods, “I don’t know, do I seem like I would be afraid of babies? Cannot believe I admitted that.”

“ _Babies_?” Sirius exclaims, “Fucking Marlene McKinnon bows down to little shits who don’t even have fine motor skills.”

“Sirius, unfortunately, I am not scared of you and will deck you if you say one more word.”

“Lily. tell us yours,” Sirius diverts the conversation, “Before Marlene kills me.”

“I’m scared of butterflies,” Lily says, immediately visibly regretting it, “Yeah, ok, that’s right, thanks brain for letting everyone know that.”

“I hate swimming, nor can I swim,” Dorcas chimes in, “I have a horrible fear of drowning.”

“Reg,” James looks at him, “You’re the last one, you have to tell us.”

Regulus swallows what he just took a sip of, “Dumb fear?” 

James nods, “Mhm.”

“Well, I have a lot,” Regulus says, “Needles is probably the dumbest.”

“Really?” Marlene asks, “You never struck me as someone who was scared of much.”

Regulus shakes his head, “I’m scared of quite a bit.”

“That was a good question, good one Mary,” Peter compliments, “What next?”

“I have a good question,” Lily says, “I think this won’t end well, but what’s the worst thing you’ve been called?”

“Before you say anything, Sirius,” Marlene stops him, “Parents don’t count.”

“Disgusting fucking blood traitor, then,” Sirius answers as if it’s nothing, looking over at Regulus, “Reg, I’m sure your answer is similar.”

Regulus nods, “Spineless instead of disgusting.”

“Mine is filthy mudblood, but we know that,” Lily chimes in.

“Sick fucking monster,” Remus says.

“Do I have to repeat mine?” Dorcas asks, “It’s racist, that’s as far as we’re going.”

Marlene laughs, “I was called a slut the entirety of last year, sorry I’m known for my game.”

“I cannot compete with this,” James shakes his head, “Peter, Mary?”

Both of them shake their heads. “Yeah, I don’t have anything that matches _any_ of that,” Mary answers.

Mary looks off behind Regulus, Regulus not getting the opportunity to look back before James pulls him into a conversation. 

“Reg Reg,” James calls, “Have you written Mum at all yet?” 

Regulus nods, a little confused, “A couple of times, why?”

“Did she tell you about how...” James trails off, looking confused at something behind Regulus. Regulus doesn’t have to turn around before he hears a _very_ familiar voice calling something he hasn’t heard from it in a long time. 

“Regulus!”


	74. I'm Sorry

“Regulus!” Cynthia calls, walking up beside the chair he’s sitting in. He looks up at her in shock, having no idea where she came from, what she wants with him, and  _ why _ she’s using his full name.

He tries to ask her what she’s doing here, unable to actually form the question in his confusion. She just holds out her hand to him, stare unwavering. 

“Come here, I need to talk to you,” She demands, the typical cheeriness in her voice nowhere to be found. He finds himself getting up and setting his cup on the table, having no choice but to follow after her when she grabs his arm and drags him into one of the study rooms. 

She shuts the door behind herself, turning to him and giving him no opportunity to say anything before she asks, “Why have you been ignoring me?” 

“What- I- I’ve-” He stammers for an answer, Cynthia just continuing.

“Every time I try and talk to you, you make up some excuse not to. And I get it if you aren’t feeling well, or if you’re just tired, but it’s been  _ every day _ for almost a  _ month, _ ” She takes another step towards him, Regulus taking a further step back towards the corner, “I’ve tried to ask you to do everything I know you like doing, and I’ve tried to convince myself that when you turn it all down that it isn’t my fault, but I just don’t understand why else you would be giving me the cold shoulder.”

Regulus just stares at her a moment, saying the only thing he can think of, “I’m sorry.”

“That’s it?” She questions, quite aggressively, her cheeks flushing a bright red, “That’s all you can give me? You’ve been doing nothing but dodging me at every corner and you’re just sorry?”

“I’m- I’m-” Regulus struggles to say anything else, “I’m sorry.”

“All of the sudden over break you just decided there was something you couldn’t stand about me? Is that what happened?”

“No,” He shakes his head, taking another step back away from her, “I’m sorry.”

“So what did I do? What suddenly changed that made you no longer want to take any Hogsmeade trips with me? Or do any studying? Or spend any time with me  _ at all _ ?” She asks, the fight starting to leave her voice as tears well up in her eyes, her arms wrapping their way around her stomach, “I’ve tried to just give you space because I know sometimes you need it, but it’s hard when all of a sudden my best friend doesn’t want to associate with me at all anymore. You’ve spent more time after coming back with your brother than you have with me.”

Regulus bites back at what he  _ wants  _ to say, trying not to spill everything he’s been feeling in the past month rather replacing it with the same, broken mantra, “I’m sorry.” 

“I just want to know what I did wrong,” She pleads, taking another couple of steps towards him so he’s practically backed into the corner. She grabs his hand lightly, a gesture he hasn’t felt in a while, “I want to know so I can fix it, I miss you  _ so  _ much, Reggie. I know I shouldn’t because what you’re doing isn’t right but I’m not mad at you. I don’t care what it is, I just want you to tell me what’s wrong so I can fix it. Please.”

“I-” He shakes his head, “I can’t talk to you, Thia, I don’t know how. Being around you makes me anxious and everything you do overwhelms me and I don’t know how to fix it because it isn’t your fault. I just can’t stop thinking about you, and how-” He starts to trip over his words as they escape him before he can think about it, “Ever since- Over break- with James- I figured out I love you, more than a friend. And I don’t know how to deal with it.”

She stares at him in shock, tears freefalling down her face, her hand dropping from his. What he said sinks in and he panics, ignoring his heart pounding in his ears and walking as fast as he can out of the room.

“Reggie!” She yells after him, Regulus not looking back as he goes up the staircase to his brother’s door, shutting the door a little too loudly behind him. He stumbles over to James’ bed, the only one he’s really comfortable sitting on, resting his elbows on his legs and burying his head in his hands. 

The door opens not even a minute later, Regulus not looking up as footsteps shuffle in the room. He feels the bed sink next to him, someone putting a hand on his shoulder.

“Reg?” Sirius says, “What did you do?”

“Don’t automatically assume he did something,” James argues, “That’s a big jump.”

“She was crying and he was not,” Sirius points out, “He did something.”

“Reg, did you do something?” James questions, Regulus looking up to see him sitting in front of him, Sirius leaning forward to look at him, waiting for an answer. 

“I told her,” Regulus admits, “I didn’t mean to, I- I just told her.”

“Told her…” James encourages him to keep talking, but Sirius has already figured it out. 

“Shit, well, that’s what you get for talking to her on truth serum, I guess,” He rubs his shoulder, “But, at least you told her, she  _ should _ get to know after you left her in the dark for a month. What did she say?”

“Nothing,” Regulus looks over at Sirius, who, for as much as he pretends he doesn’t care, is looking on in slight concern. 

“She said nothing?” Sirius furrows his brow, confused, “Other than yelling your name?”

Regulus shakes his head, “She just stared at me.”

“Why the fuck did she do that?” Sirius puzzles, seemingly knowing something more than Regulus does. He doesn’t get to ask anything before someone else walks into the room, Regulus looking over to see Remus peeking in.

“Is everything alright in here?” Remus asks, looking between the three of them.

“Yeah, we’re fine,” Sirius gets up, “What happened after we went up here?”

“Lily took Cynthia up to her dorm, Marlene and Dorcas followed after her, and Mary decided to go too, so it’s just us now,” Remus explains, “Lily was furious, so I think that’s why the rest of the girls went after her.”

“Why was she mad?” James questions. 

“I’m not super sure, but I think it was at Regulus, considering she has been for a while,” Remus looks at Regulus, “Sorry, for the record I think she’s overreacting a little. Cynthia was telling her to stop, though, that it wasn’t your fault, but I have no idea what happened after that.”

“Can you grab the bottles from the Common Room, love? Bring them up here?” Sirius requests, his tone considerably softer than what he spoke to Regulus in. Remus nods, heading back downstairs. Sirius walks over to his bed, rummaging for something before turning around, “Do you want to crash here tonight?” 

Regulus shrugs, although Sirius knows the answer is yes. 

“Would you prefer sleeping in one of James’ shirts I stole or one of mine?”

“What shirt did you steal?” James questions, “And can I have it back?” 

“I’m not telling you, and no,” Sirius replies, “It was like two years ago, you gave it to me to sleep in when I snuck over your house and I just took it home with me.”

“I don’t trust wearing any of your clothes,” Regulus shakes his head, knowing full well what Sirius does in his free time.

“You can wear some of my clothes if you want,” James offers, “I’m sure nothing will fit you in the slightest, but you can certainly wear it.”

“I need to go back to my dorm anyway,” Regulus says, realizing he can’t just stay here, “I have Quidditch tomorrow.”

“You’re going?” Sirius asks, Regulus nodding in confusion for why he wouldn’t be. “After tonight?”

“I don’t really have a choice,” Regulus counters, “I can’t just be missing practices for no reason.”

“I mean, she’ll understand, right?”

“I’m not missing it,” Regulus states, sighing, “I guess I’ll go now, and I don’t have to stay here.”

“No, come back with stuff to stay here for the weekend, it’ll be like a little sleepover,” James says, smiling up at him from the floor, “And we can go to practice together, we’re sharing the pitch tomorrow.”

Regulus nods, appreciating that James stopped him from leaving for the night, because, oddly enough, he really doesn’t want to be alone. It’s something he’d never thought he’d admit. 

“I’ll be back, then,” Regulus gets up, walking to the door and stopping as it opens, Remus and Peter walking in. 

“Oh- Sorry Regulus,” Remus apologizes, “Are you leaving?”

Regulus shakes his head, Sirius speaking for him, “Reg is gonna stay the night, at least tonight. He’s just grabbing some of his stuff.”

“Oh, cool,” Remus replies, walking further in the room and setting down both bottles. Regulus makes his way downstairs and through the Common Room, his eyes falling on the open Study Room door for a moment too long. He shakes off the sinking feeling it gives him, focusing on his walk back to his dorm. 

He doesn’t even care if he runs into anyone he shouldn’t, nothing can be quite as bad as how much he messed up tonight. 

Fuck that truth serum. 

***

The rest of the room has long gone to bed, leaving Regulus laying awake in their spare bed, facing the wall. He’s holding onto the bee, the one Nymphadora gave him, that he’s been embarrassingly sleeping with for the past week and a half. It feels like home, even if it’s lost the smell of it. He still clutches it to his chest, hopelessly wishing he could have one night of sleep that wasn’t restless. Or that he would wake up back home, either one. 

No longer idly sipping on Firewhiskey like he was for most of tonight, he actually starts to sit in what happened with Cynthia. He hadn’t really processed it, not until hours after it happened. And now it’s hitting him all at once. How he came so close to fixing things. How it was literally  _ handed _ to him, and he still messed it up. How every detail of that interaction has been burned into his memory.

The look on her face when he confessed, in particular. 

He remembers exactly how wide her eyes were, and in the dim lighting of the room, how her eyes looked darker than normal, red-rimmed from crying. He will never get over that he made her break like that, crying and pleading with him to tell her what was going on. 

He chokes on a sob that seems to come out of nowhere, tears starting to sting in his eyes. This bed has no curtain on it, and only Peter’s curtain is closed. If he makes any noise, he’ll assuredly wake at least one other person up. But pushing back tears is making him feel like he’s going to suffocate, which isn’t a nice feeling either. He really wishes this bed had a curtain. 

He cups a hand over his mouth, hoping maybe he’ll manage to have his breakdown silently, although he’s barely any quieter. He just hopes Sirius is comfortable enough with Remus to not want to wake up enough to deduce where the sound is coming from. Regulus buries his face in the bee in his hands as best he can, wishing it still smelt like home. 

He closes his eyes, trying to picture anything but Cynthia’s crying face, and subsequently failing. It just makes him cry harder, knowing that was entirely his fault. 

He hears movement on the other side of the room, hoping it’s just someone getting up to go to the bathroom or something. The footsteps get closer, though, Regulus instinctively trying to still and quiet himself as they walk over right beside the bed. To his surprise, over top of him is laid the yellow and purple knitted blanket, someone rubbing his head before walking back off to the other side of the room again. He doesn’t need to look up to know it was Sirius. 

He pulls the blanket up so his head is barely peeking out from the top, surrounding himself in what’s familiar. But none of it seems to work. He still feels like he’s being crushed by every word he said to her, every worthless ‘Sorry’ he tried to throw her direction, a confession that probably ruined their relationship. 

He ruined it. He really did lose her this time, didn’t he? But it makes sense, he had it coming.

She deserves so much better.


	75. Lucky Weekend

Regulus sluggishly makes his way onto the pitch after James, really,  _ really _ not wanting to be here today. His head is pounding, his entire body aches, and he almost feels like he’s going to collapse walking onto the field. Not to mention he’s exhausted and impossibly anxious, considering he barely got any sleep last night and the glare he got from Lily this morning was enough to set anyone on edge. 

“Good morning you two,” Emma laughs, “Did Reg make you here on time, James?”

“Hey, you can’t yell at a captain,” He pokes back, looking over at the small congregation of three Slytherin Quidditch players that are already here, “Your kids are already here?”

“I mean, three of them are, four now with Reg,” Emma answers, “It’s good to be a little early sometimes, you should try it.”

“Not a single kid on my team is here yet, relatively, I’m early,” James playfully argues, looking back to the two Gryffindor kids walking onto the pitch. 

Emma looks at Regulus a moment, “Are you feeling alright Reg? You look kind of rough.”

Regulus nods, although he doesn’t think Emma is quite buying it. “I’m fine,” He assures her, his voice rugged. 

“If you say so,” She shrugs, glancing back at the team, “I need you to be alright, though, because you have to help me a little with teaching Yaxley how to guard.”

“Oh, that’s not fun,” James comments, looking at Regulus, “Sorry, that’s going to suck.”

“Yeah, considering how banged up you got last time, Reg, we might not be doing it for very long,” Emma sighs, “If you’re really not feeling it while we’re practicing just let me know and we’ll do something else for a little, I know you’re not a fan of bludgers.”

Regulus nods again, having a crushing feeling that this isn’t going to go well. He’s not attentive enough right now to be able to throw himself out of the way of danger.

Emma looks off behind him, Regulus turning around to see the rest of the team walking up to them. Emma gestures for Regulus to follow her before looking back and yelling.

“Hustle! We’re starting!” 

***

Regulus narrowly dodges another unguarded bludger, rubbing his face and reminding himself that it’s just a bludger. Still, his hands are shaking so much that he’s barely holding onto the broom. Today was not the day to push his nerves. 

“Yaxley, you better get your ass moving!” Emma scolds, “That’s the fourth one you’ve missed in a row, you know what you need to do.” 

“Sorry, I’m working on it,” He lazily excuses, clearly not at all working on it.

“The second you see it you get in front of him, you should not be missing a single one, you’re faster than that,” Emma instructs, “Don’t make me regret using Reg to help you out.”

“I won’t,” He answers, moving back to where he was, Regulus toying around with the Snitch in his hand while she tells Samael what to do again. Although, in his still hazy headspace, he doesn’t catch when the bludger comes right at him. Samael doesn’t even try to stop it, and it nails Regulus’ right wrist. He pulls his wrist to his chest and doubles over, his other hand gripping the broom so he doesn’t fall off, hearing Emma yelling at Samael but not bothering to pay attention to any of it. 

That  _ hurt _ .  _ A lot _ . 

He gets himself on the ground, cradling his wrist to his chest and trying to find his balance and not cry at the same time. He’s somehow failing at both, tears welling in his eyes and his feet still shuffling to keep him upright below him. He hears the break whistle sound, Emma landing in front of him. 

“Hey, can I see that wrist, Reg?” She prompts, Regulus holding out his wrist in front of him. His hands are still shaking, so she grabs his arm to steady it and take off his glove, though she grabs it in the exact wrong spot. He sucks in air through his gritted teeth and pulls it away from her, Emma immediately pulling her hands back.

“Shit, I’m sorry,” She puts a hand on his back, grabbing his broom to hold and starting to guide him off the middle of the field. She doesn’t say anything, which he appreciates because he doesn’t think he can really focus on anything right now. The pain in his wrist is clouding his head on top of every other problem he’s woken up with today.

James lands a little off from them as they walk up to the exit of the pitch, running up.

“What happened?” He asks, “All of a sudden no one wanted to pay attention to me, so whatever it is wasn’t good.”

“Yeah, Reg got nailed by a bludger pretty bad,” Emma glances back at the kids taking their break in the stands, Regulus seeing them all looking right at them. He’s so uncomfortable, everything about this situation is his worst nightmare. 

“Shit, Reg, are you alright?” James asks, Regulus shaking his head. He’ll admit weakness if it gets him out of this, he’s already crying, there’s no use lying about it. “I’ll take him to the Hospital Wing if you can make sure none of the kids on my team kill one another.”

“I’ll watch them, thank you James,” Emma looks over at Regulus, “I’ll find you later, Reg, hopefully you’re not too hurt.”

Regulus nods, although considering the fact that he’s in so much pain he’s crying he doubts that he isn’t too hurt. James wraps an arm around his shoulder and walks him off, glancing over a couple of times but not saying anything. James rubs his shoulder as they walk, giving Regulus something else to focus on. It’s not helping much, but it’s at least something. 

They get back into the castle, James finally saying something. 

“You holding up alright?”

Regulus shakes his head because he really isn’t. Everything stacked on top of each other is killing him, between his increasingly pounding head and the constant sharp pain in his wrist. 

“We’re good, we’re good,” James assures, although it sounds like he’s more trying to convince himself. They finally walk into the Hospital Wing, Madam Pomfrey looking up from something she’s brewing. 

She walks over, “Quidditch uniforms never mean something good, what happened?”

“A bludger nailed Reg’s wrist,” James explains, “Emma sent me with him.”

“Ok, alright, come here, both of you,” She gestures for them to follow her, having Regulus sit on the bed second from the end, considering the last has stuff on it. James sits on the bed on his left, Madam Pomfrey walking off to grab something before pulling up a chair on his right. She holds it out to him, “Here, take this, I don’t want to look at that wrist if you’re in pain.”

He takes the vial from her, drinking what’s in it and slowly feeling the pain in his wrist edge away, but not completely. The pounding in his head subsides a little too, which he absolutely appreciates. 

“Better?” She asks, Regulus nodding, “Alright, this is probably still going to hurt, though, but it’ll be better once I can take this glove off.”

She unstraps the glove from his hand, Regulus gritting his teeth as she takes it off. She reveals his considerable swollen wrist, a dark purple bruise starting to spread across it, accented by how light his skin is. He’s seen it like this before, and it was the last time he broke it. 

“Goodness, alright,” She turns his hand over, which just looks even worse, “Can you flex your fingers out for me?”

He slowly stretches out his fingers, pain shooting up his entire arm.

“That hurts?” She asks, Regulus vehemently nodding, “Ok, yeah, I think that’s broken dear. Let me grab my wand and heal that for you.”

She gets up and back to where she was working when they came in, grabbing her wand and walking back over. She mumbles something as she runs it from just below the inside of his elbow to the middle of his palm, the swelling easing but the bruise staying just as big. 

“I always forget you don’t seem to react well to healing,” She comments, casting another spell on the other side of his arm. It barely does anything. “Can you try and move your fingers again? In and out?”

He stretches his fingers out and brings them back in, in less pain than last time but still definitely stiff. 

“I almost want to put a brace on it, just to keep it straight for a little while,” She thinks out loud, tapping her wand on her knee.

“You can’t just fix it?” James questions, “Why?”

“Some kids just don’t react well to healing spells, Regulus happens to be one of them. I believe the last time you came in here with a broken wrist I did the same thing, correct?”

Regulus nods. 

“Then that’s what I’ll do,” She gets up and walks off again, rummaging in one of her cabinets. 

“That’s so weird that those just don’t work,” James marvels, “Has it always been like that?”

Regulus nods, “Medical nightmare, remember?”

“You really weren’t lying,” James laughs, looking over as Madam Pomfrey walks back to her chair. “Is that frequent?” He asks her.

“Not very, but it happens enough that I know how to deal with it,” She tells him as she starts to put his wrist into the brace she’s holding, “It happens a lot in younger kids, your mother would probably know a lot about it too. Sometimes they grow out of it, sometimes they don’t.”

“Like Reg?” 

“Well, Regulus still has time to grow out of it, so not quite,” Madam Pomfrey examines his now braced wrist, “I think that’ll be fine, I’ll send you with a couple of painkilling potions to drink a little later, but I want you to come back at some point tomorrow so I can check on it. Are you right-handed?”

“I can write with both,” He tells her.

“Perfect, alright,” She nods, “Try to keep that on, if you take it off don’t flex it around too much. I trust you enough to know you probably won’t.”

James chimes in, “How long will it take to heal? And what about that bruise?” 

“Well, since it’s already partially healed, no more than a week or two,” Madam Pomfrey answers, “And that bruise is going to be ugly, but I want to treat it tomorrow so I can treat the whole thing. There, in fact, is a method to my madness.”

“I trust you, I’m just interested,” James laughs, “None of us are dead yet, so I know you know what you’re doing.”

“I’m glad you have faith in me,” She smiles, looking back to Regulus, “Is there anything else you need before I send you back?”

“No, thank you,” He shakes his head, just wanting to curl up in bed and pretend none of this has happened.

“Alright, make sure you come check in with me tomorrow so I can treat it a little more,” She gets up and rubs his shoulder, grabbing a couple of vials off her shelf, “Here, make sure you take them no less than three hours apart, preferably four. Come see me if you need anything.”

Regulus nods, taking the vials from her and placing them in his pocket and gets up after James, who wraps his arm back around Regulus’ shoulder. 

“Bye Madam Pomfrey! James calls as he walks Regulus out, “I’ll see you- Uh, next week?”

“Goodbye, boys, feel better Regulus,” She bids goodbye, Regulus looking back and forcing a small smile before they walk out of the Hospital Wing. 

“So, here’s what I’m thinking,” James starts, “You look like you’re not having a good day today, so I’ll walk you back to Gryffindor Tower and you can relax in our dorm. I know your bed doesn’t have a curtain so you’re welcome to crash on mine if you want. Sirius may or may not be there? I think he went on a date with Remus to Hogsmeade today. If he did then it’ll just be Peter, who doesn’t really make any noise. And then I’ll come back from Quidditch later and- Well, we’ll figure that out then, right?”

“Mhm,” Regulus nods, not really caring about anything but getting back in bed. James continues talking though, even if Regulus doesn’t hear a word. He walks him all the way back to the painting before turning to look at him.

“I don’t want to walk you up to our dorm because I don’t trust myself not to stay, and I can’t leave Emma watching my team forever, so I’ll be back once practice is over,” James smiles, “Feel better, ok Reg?” 

Regulus nods, “Thank you.”

James waves as he walks off, his pace much faster than what he and Regulus walked here at. Regulus waves back before reciting the password to the portrait, letting it swing open so he can walk in. The Common Room is generally quiet, Regulus seeing Marlene and Dorcas laying together on the couch. There are a few other kids spread around the room, but for the most part, it’s empty. 

Marlene catches sight of him, “Hey Regulus, did Quidditch end already?”

Regulus shakes his head, holding up his wrist.

“Oh shit- what happened?” She asks, Regulus walking up a little closer so they’re not screaming across the room.

“It got hit, it’s fine,” Regulus brushes her off. 

“Shit, that sucks, doesn’t it?” She comments, “Well, that’s all I wanted to ask you, I was just confused because I know Quidditch is an all-day affair. I’ll let you go.”

Regulus nods and waves to her before walking up to the dorm, opening the door as quietly as he can, slipping in the room and seeing Peter working on something on his bed. 

He looks up, “Oh, uh- Hi.”

Regulus waves back, both of them staring at each other a moment.

“Where’s James?”

“At practice,” Regulus says, holding his wrist up so he hopefully doesn’t have to say anything else.

“Oh, oh ok,” Peter nods, “I’m sure James told you, but Sirius and Remus are out at Hogsmeade.”

Regulus nods, their conversation just dying off. The two of them are not the most social beings, so talking to one another is destined not to go well. Regulus just walks over to his bed, grabbing some of his clothes and setting the two vials Madam Pomfrey gave him on the nightstand before walking off into the bathroom to change.

He decides he’ll shower later, when he doesn’t feel like the entire world is against him, instead walking back over to his bed and grabbing the knitted blanket he slept with last night and taking it to sit on James’ bed. Regulus draws the curtain closed so he can’t hear anything outside. 

He lays down, pulling the blanket up to his neck and trying to lay down comfortably. With the stupid brace, it’s near impossible considering he normally sleeps on his right side. He finally finds a half-decent position, half on his side and half facing up, where he at least feels like he can kind of sleep comfortably. He silently thanks whatever Madam Pomfrey had him drink because he’s slowed his mind down enough to make him tired rather than anxious like he was before. 

He still overthinks himself to sleep, though. There’s no stopping that. And knowing his luck in these past couple of days, the rest of the weekend is probably going to look no better. 

Perfect. He can’t wait. 


	76. Too Oblivious

The curtain of the bed gets pulled back, light disrupting Regulus’ half-pleasant nap. Regulus looks up to see James’ smiling face, his hair slightly wet. 

“Good morning, Reg,” James laughs, “Sorry, I needed to wake you up, Sirius said you’re coming to dinner with us.”

“I’m not hungry,” Regulus mumbles, rolling on his back, looking up at the seemingly spinning ceiling. He has no idea how long he was sleeping, but long enough for the painkiller to wear off. His wrist hurts again, not nearly as much as before, but definitely enough for him to focus on it. 

“Yes, you are,” Sirius says, seemingly from across the room, “You can sit with us, but you’re not drinking another one of those on an empty stomach.”

“Tell Sirius no I’m not,” Regulus rubs his face with his good hand.

“Tell Regulus he’s coming with us whether he likes it or not,” Sirius counters, “Get up, Reg.”

Regulus groans but gets out of bed, standing still a moment as his vision blurs a moment. Ok, maybe he’s a little hungry. 

“Here,” James hands him the vial from the nightstand, “Take this with you.”

Regulus takes it from him, looking down at his mess of an outfit. He’s in sweatpants and one of Sirius’ old shirts he doesn’t fit in anymore. He is absolutely not going to dinner in this.

“Reg, you can get changed if you really want, we’ll wait,” Sirius tells him, reading his mind. Regulus nods and walks over to his bag, pulling out the only actual outfit he brought. 

He goes into the bathroom and changes into a white button-up, that one with the slightly puffy sleeves that Cynthia loves, and just a pair of black pants. At least his sleeves are big enough to partially cover the brace, the last thing he wants is looks from anyone. He looks in the mirror, trying to straighten out his hair a little bit, considering how unruly it is. He doesn’t do a very good job, his hair continuing to get stuck in the brace. He just flattens it out with one hand walking back out of the bathroom. 

“Looking a little rough, Reg,” Sirius playfully jeers, Regulus rolling his eyes at him. He tosses his clothes on his bed, pocketing the vial James handed him. He’s still not really awake, and he probably won’t eat, but he doesn’t really have a choice but to go. 

“Are we ready?” James excitedly asks, “I’m hungry, I spent most of my lunch talking to Emma.”

“What was so interesting that all you did was talk?” Sirius questions as they start to file out of the room, Regulus putting himself at the back of the group. 

“A few different things, all Quidditch related,” James answers, looking back at Regulus as they head down the stairs, “Oh, Reg, after you left we got practically nothing done. And I’m pretty sure Yaxley got lectured for at least 10 minutes, Emma was pissed.”

“I’m sure,” Regulus answers, letting James fall back into a conversation with Sirius. Sirius doesn’t let go of Remus’ hand, who is walking in front of him and talking to Peter. 

The moment they step into the Great Hall Regulus wants out. It’s bright and loud and there are people absolutely everywhere. Granted, he probably hates it so much because he hasn’t been here in a while, but regardless it’s making him really uncomfortable. He glances off towards the Slytherin table, unsure if he should eat over there instead. He gets his answer when James grabs his hand, admittedly his bad one. 

“Careful,” Regulus warns, knowing James has a tendency to jostle people around. 

“Sorry! I just want you to sit on this side with me,” James apologizes, taking a seat across from Sirius. Regulus sits next to him, across from Remus, who is sitting next to Peter. 

Remus looks off elsewhere, Regulus following his gaze to see Lily and Cynthia walking in, idly splitting on either side of the table and walking up to the free space right next to where Peter, Regulus, Remus, Sirius, and James are sitting. Cynthia sits right next to him, not even realizing until Lily breaks away to greet Remus. 

They stare at each other a moment, Cynthia going wide-eyed for a moment before giving him a small, awkward wave, Regulus returning it with his right hand instead of his left. She looks confused at the injury a moment before looking away as Marlene and Dorcas walk up to the table. Regulus turns back to James, moving so his back is partially to her. 

“Hi Reg!” James waves, “Why’re you-” He leans around Regulus, gasping before cupping a hand over his mouth to try and hide the fact that he’s laughing. 

“You’re unlucky this weekend, aren’t you?” Sirius comments, stifling a laugh, “Perfect, maybe you should-”

“Sirius,” Regulus warns, “Don’t even suggest it.”

“Sorry, sorry, I’ll let you off the hook for now,” Sirius surrenders, starting to fill his plate with food from the middle of the table. Regulus does the same, taking portions small enough that he thinks he could potentially finish them. He picks at it slowly, listening in on the others’ conversation. 

“Is  _ it _ Wednesday or Thursday?” James asks, Regulus having no idea what he’s talking about.

“Neither, Friday,” Remus answers, “Which, in all honestly, is simultaneously the best and worst day it can be.”

“Don’t we have a Potions test on Thursday?” Peter asks.

“I didn’t know, but good to know I won’t be taking it,” Remus answers.

“It’s the day before, you think you’ll be out already?”

“Out enough not to take a test, I’ll have to talk to Slughorn,” Remus groans, “I hate doing that, he has no idea what’s going on at any given time.”

“Yeah, he’s certainly a character,” James laughs, “At least it’s not Professor Binns.”

“Oh my God, fuck Professor Binns, I despise him,” Remus replies, “I hate missing his class because he’s just like well why didn’t you just wash your hands so you wouldn’t get sick? Do you  _ know _ how many times I’ve told him?”

“Hearing you talk to him is absolutely hysterical,” Sirius comments, “He’s  _ so _ painfully not understanding it’s actually funny.” 

Regulus looks down at his almost empty plate, deciding he’s eaten enough and takes out the vial in his pocket. Before he can drink it, Sirius leans over to look at what he ate, and when he doesn’t say anything Regulus assumes it was enough for him. He drinks the potion, which is much more bitter than the last time he took it. He assumes it’s because he wasn’t really focusing on what it tasted like, anything was better than what he was feeling then.

He pockets the empty vial, glancing over at Cynthia next to him. She’s been quiet since she sat down, which is odd for her. She’s sitting with her hands in her lap, simply looking on as Marlene tells some crazy story. Regulus notes that the sweater that she’s wearing isn’t hers, or at least he’s never seen her in it. Yellow is a pretty color on her, though. Although, Regulus thinks every color is pretty on her.

“Reg,” James calls his attention back to reality, “What’re you thinking about? You look lost in thought.”

“Nothing,” Regulus brushes him off.

“Then why are you blushing?” Sirius challenges, Regulus cutting him off before he can go any further. 

“No,” Regulus stops him, “Moving on.”

Sirius laughs, “You teased me all summer a couple of years ago about Remus, and I can’t do it to you? That’s unfair.”

“Cry me a river,” Regulus deadpans. 

“Oh, have I told you guys about what happened today at Quidditch?” James asks, “Well, other than Reg breaking his wrist.”

“Probably, but tell it anyway,” Sirius encourages, James smiling before launching into a story Regulus is sure he’ll hear from Emma at some point. He doesn’t really listen, rather stealing glances at Cynthia every so often. 

He really doesn’t know how he’s going to fix things with her. 

Hell, he doesn’t think he can. 

***

Remus knocks on the door to Lily’s dorm, the door opening almost immediately to reveal Lily smiling at him from the other side. 

“Hi Remus,” She greets, “What’s up?”

“I just need back the potions book you borrowed from me, Peter needs it,” Remus says, Lily nodding and gesturing for him to come in the room. The curtain to her bed is closed and seemingly sealed, considering the person behind it doesn’t open it when he walks in.

“I think I put it in here,” Lily mutters, opening a drawer, “Nope, No I didn’t. Shit, where the hell did I put it?”

“How did you already lose it? I gave it to you three days ago, not even.”

“Look Remus, it’s been a hectic two days,” Lily counters, “Although, I think you know that.”

“Oh, do I know that?” Remus laughs, “Guess who has been holed up in our dorm for two days.”

“Guess who has been holed up in mine,” Lily replies, pointing at the closed bed, “None other than his other half.”

“What the fuck happened between the two of them?” Remus asks, following Lily as she walks to the other side of her bed, “I have no idea.”

“You don’t know? James didn’t tell you?”

Remus shakes his head, “James has been surprisingly quiet when it comes to information about Regulus, probably because if he says one thing he’ll say everything, and Regulus doesn’t strike me as the kind who likes his secrets told. All I know is what I told you.”

“Yeah, well he told her that,” Lily says, getting up from where she was on the ground rummaging through her trunk, “When she took him off into that room, she said she was chewing him out about ignoring her and all of a sudden he just went on about how he doesn’t know how to talk to her because he loves her as more than a friend.”

“ _ That’s _ what happened?” Remus shakes his head, “Holy shit, Lily, they’re worse than Sirius and I.”

“Never thought I would agree with that, but they are,” She crosses her arms, “I’m still mad at him, though, because he just disappeared after he said it.”

“You can’t really blame him, Lily, he probably didn’t mean to,” Remus counters, “He drank the truth serum like the rest of us.”

“Yeah, fair point,” Lily nods, “Cynthia was really out of it today, especially when the two of us took a trip to Hogsmeade. I think I asked her a million times if she was listening to me. I don’t know about Regulus, but what happened last night is killing her.”

“Pretty sure Regulus cried himself to sleep last night. Sirius got up to lay another blanket on him, apparently it was from home or something,” Remus replies, “And he wasn’t looking too great today, although he also broke his wrist at practice.”

“He  _ what _ ? Was that what Cynthia was talking about?” Lily questions, “She was telling me that he had a brace on his wrist, but I swore I didn’t see it.”

“He had his sleeve pulled over it but they were sitting right next to one another, so she probably saw it,” He reasons, “James told me that he brought him to the Hospital Wing when it happened and how the bruise took up most of his arm.”

“And Madam Pomfrey didn’t fully heal it?”

“He said she tried but it didn’t work,” Remus shrugs, “James then went on to rattle off some healer knowledge I didn’t understand, but I caught enough of it.”

Lily sighs, “Shit, well, that sucks.”

“Yeah,” Remus agrees, glancing off towards the closed curtain of Lily’s bed, “What is going to happen with the two of them? Have you talked to Cynthia about what she’s thinking at all?”

“She said she’s going to give it a couple of days, that if they talked now she doesn’t think she could do it,” Lily tells him, “I think it’s smart, giving it some time before she brings it up. But, the challenge is, I’m pretty sure he thinks that she thinks less of him because he said that. Cynthia keeps blaming herself because she said her reaction probably led him to believe she did not reciprocate that, but it’s not really her fault.”

“The two of them are just too oblivious to see the fact that the other one is just as clueless,” Remus sighs, “I think that things will work out, if the two of them really care about one another they will.”

“That’s the hope, especially because we don’t really have the room for a sixth person,” Lily laughs, “We try to keep Dorcas and Marlene from sleeping in the same bed because it always ends the same.”

“Yeah, James and Peter tried that and it lasted about a month, now Sirius and I pretty much permanently share a bed,” Remus laughs, looking over as Lily’s curtain slides open, a half-asleep Cynthis sitting on the other side.

“Good morning Cynthia,” Lily greets, “Say hello to Remus.”

“Hi,” Cynthia waves at him, Remus waving back. 

“We were just talking about how you didn’t lie to me that Regulus was wearing a brace,” Lily says, “Apparently he broke his wrist at Quidditch.”

“He broke his wrist?” Cynthia asks in slight disbelief before shaking her head, “Of course he did, that makes total sense for him.”

“It was a bludger when training that new beater they have, from what James told me,” Remus tells her, Cynthia cringing.

“Great, Yaxley? He hates Reggie,” She sighs, “I’m going back to sleep, this conversation is just making me more nervous.”

“Ok, goodnight Cynthia,” Lily laughs, Cynthia shutting the curtain again. Lily turns back to Remus, “See what I mean? Not doing well.”

“I believed you,” Remus concedes, pausing a moment, “Ok, I promised Sirius I would be right back and I’ve been here for way longer than I wanted to be, where’s my book?”

“Oh shit,” Lily turns around, digging in her bag and pulling it out, handing it to him, “Found it.”

“Thank you, Lily,” Remus smiles, “Now, I’m going back to what I  _ was _ doing, but it was wonderful talking to you.”

“Can’t believe I don’t match the entertainment of your boyfriend.”

“You could never,” Remus playfully shoots back, walking towards the door and opening it, “I’ll ask you for what else is going on in a couple of days, check back in.”

“I’ll be ready,” Lily laughs, “Bye, Remus.”

“Have a good night, Lily.”


	77. You're My Examples

Sunday has been pretty much in line with what happened the past two days.

Regulus visited Madam Pomfrey in the morning, just to have her be unable to heal more than the edges of the bruise on his arm, and tell him he has to in a brace until at least Friday. Then, walking back into the Gryffindor Common Room he thought Lily was going to kill him just staring at him, and Marlene made it even more awkward pulling him into a small conversation that he despised. And now he’s trying to blend into the wall as the rest of the room seemingly yells at each other for no reason.

“But if you think about it- No no, if you think about it,” James yells over Sirius, “If you think about it, we could put a leash on Sirius and walk him around, we could do it!”

“We  _ won’t _ !” Sirius yells back, “We will leave me off the leash because I’m not going anywhere.”

“But, we could, and it would look much more normal,” James suppresses a laugh, “If we took you to a dog park-”

“No, no no,” Sirius stops him, “If we can’t put Peter in a rat trap we can’t put  _ me _ in a leash.”

“Those are very different,” Peter cuts in.

“I don’t see why we can’t do both!” James says, “They both sound fun!”

Sirius grabs his wand and runs over to James, who snatches his off the table and points it at him. He doesn’t get to cast anything, though, before the tip of Sirius’ wand lights up and James completely freezes, staring at it wide-eyed. Remus and Peter dissolve into laughter, Sirius holding the wand steady until Remus manages to talk him down from it.

“Sirius, that’s enough that’s enough,” Remus forces through laughter, Sirius lowering his wand and James immediately flipping him off.

“Fuck you, Sirius!” James laughs, “That’s off-limits!” 

“So is putting me in a leash-”

Every head shoots over as the door opens, Lily sticking her head in and looking around at all 5 of them. She just shakes her head before continuing.

“Pretending I didn’t hear any of that, I have two letters from Slughorn,” She holds them out, Remus getting up and taking them, “He said everything is in there.”

“Thank you, Evans!” James beams at her, Lily rolling her eyes but failing at fighting a smile. 

“You’re welcome, Potter,” She replies before shutting the door and heading downstairs. Remus walks over and hands one to Regulus and one to James before grabbing Sirius’ hand and walking him back to their bed. Regulus opens up the letter, seeing an invitation to another dinner on Monday, behind it a note. 

_ I’m asking a selection of 5 of my dinner club to help introduce some of my younger students, with the potential to possibly join themselves once they’re older, how to properly carry themselves at a nice dinner. I ask you to get ready as if you would any other dinner, demonstrate how they should carry themselves. I trust you all to be on your best behavior, you’re my examples.  _

_ Come find me if there are any issues. _

At the bottom is signed Slughorn’s loopy, illegible signature. Regulus looks up at James, who is smiling excitedly at the letter. 

“That’s so fun!” James comments, “Training younger kids?” 

“You’re  _ barely _ proper yourself, James,” Regulus points out.

James nods, “Fair, but I’m going anyway.”

“You’ll be our bad example.”

“Hey!” James exclaims, “So rude to me, Reg, so rude.”

“What are you two talking about?” Sirius asks, who is back sitting on the bed and has Remus wrapped around him from behind. 

“Slughorn invited us to a dinner tomorrow, apparently with a group of younger kids he wants to recruit eventually,” James explains, “Strange, he already had that young one last time.”

“Julia,” Regulus reminds him, James nodding. 

“Well, there goes our plans on Monday,” Sirius laughs, “Foiled by none other than Horace Slughorn.”

“Who else could foil them?” James replies, “It’s alright, you can fuck-“

“Don’t finish that sentence,” Sirius stops him, “I don’t want to know where it’s going.”

“You know where it’s going,” Remus props his chin on Sirius’ shoulder. 

“I do,” Sirius looks over and kisses Remus, “And maybe I will.”

“No, no no no,” James cuts them off, “I take that back, I don’t want to hear it.”

“Jealous,” Sirius mocks in a singsong voice. 

“Stop!” James whines, burying his face in his hands. 

Sirius laughs, “It’s so easy, James.”

“Tease Reg! Now you can tease him instead of me,” James points at Regulus. 

“It won’t be any fun if it’s Reg because I don’t want to think about that,” Sirius counters, “Teasing you is much more enjoyable.”

A knock on the door interrupts their conversation, Remus getting up and opening it. He looks in confusion at the person on the other side. 

“Hi,” A voice, sounding strikingly similar to Emma’s, greets, “Is Reg in here?”

“Oh, he’s right there,” Remus steps back and points at Regulus, Emma leaning in and smiling at him. 

“Hey Reg, can you come here a second?” Emma asks, gesturing for him to come out of the room. Regulus gets up and walks out of the room, shutting the door behind him. Emma just stays in the hall though, “I just haven’t seen you since practice, I wanted to make sure you were alright.”

“I’m fine,” Regulus replies, holding out his arm, “Just a little banged up.”

“Broken?” She points at it, “That's what James told me, but I don’t trust him.”

“Mhm,” Regulus nods. 

“That’s a little more than a little banged up, Reg,” Emma argues, “Did it bruise bad?”

Regulus takes the brace off, revealing a deep purple bruise much bigger than the last time he looked at it. He turns his hand over, the inside of his wrist showing an even deeper purple, although it’s probably partially because his skin is lighter. 

“Holy shit,” Emma comments, “I’m going to fucking kill Yaxley, so you know that?”

“It’s fine,” Regulus brushes her off, putting his brace back on.

“It’s very not fine, he should have hit that,” Emma sighs, “I’ll deal with him, but I don’t want you back at practice until that’s completely healed, deal?”

“I won’t,” Regulus assures her, although she doesn’t look like she’s buying it, “I promise I won’t.”

“You better not,” She teases, “The last thing I need is you hurt for the Ravenclaw game, and if you don’t overextend yourself you won’t be.”

“I won’t be,” Regulus promises, “Madam Pomfrey said I’ll be out of it by the end of the week.”

“So I don’t want you playing for a least a few days after,” Emma tells him, “Because you need to give it time to get used to moving again.”

“I know,” Regulus nods. He’s broken bones before, he knows the deal.

“I know you know, you just have a tendency to work injuries before you should,” She laughs, “Well, I’ll leave you alone about it. I’ll probably see you around, Reg, I hope you feel better.”

“Thank you,” He gives her a small smile as she walks off, waving back at her when she waves at him. He walks back into the room, which has significantly calmed down. Remus is still wrapped around Sirius, holding a book and reading over his shoulder. James is laying down and playing a game with himself, seemingly talking to himself as well. Peter looks already asleep next to the work he was doing, although not under his blankets or anything.

“Hey Reg!” James smiles, “What did Emma need?”

“She just wanted to know if I was alright,” Regulus replies, walking over to sit on the bed he’s been sleeping in. He checks his watch: 8:45. He should probably go back soon, considering he cannot stay another night without his robes or his suit for tomorrow. 

“What time is it, Reg?” James asks, “Do you have to leave?”

“Probably,” Regulus answers, a little defeated that he has to show his face in his dorm for the first time all weekend. 

“Are you leaving, Reg?” Sirius looks up, “Because you should shower before you go, so you don’t have to there.”

Regulus nods, grabbing the same clothes he wore to dinner the other day before and heading off into the bathroom. He looks at himself in the mirror a moment, taking his free hand and pulling at the bags under his eyes. They’re worse than usual, although he’s sure that’s due to the fact that it’s near impossible to sleep comfortably with a broken wrist. He doesn’t sleep well anyway, so anything to hinder that makes everything worse. 

He can’t believe he has to go to a damn Slug Club dinner tomorrow. 

***

Regulus fiddles with his sleeve as James knocks on Slughorn’s door, the sleeve awkwardly puffed out with the way he had to fold his dress shirt because his suit jacket and his shirt didn’t fit over the brace. He looks up as Slughorn opens the door, smiling at them.

“Hello boys! Good to see you both, although I’ve seen you today, James,” Slughorn steps back, “Come in, some of the others are already here.”

“Aw, we’re not first?” James jokingly whines, both of them walking in to see a few other kids in the room. There are two kids Regulus doesn’t recognize, a stark difference in appearance between the two. One is almost completely folded in on himself, hunched over so his suit sticks out in weird places. The other is standing up straight, his suit completely black, including his dress shirt and tie, the only color being his silver pocket chain. Conversely, however, his hair is a light pink, going down to a little bit below his shoulder. Certainly an interesting look.

Alongside the two are Lily, Cynthia, and Adrien. Cynthia is dressed in a dress similar to what she wore last time, except it’s a dark green and instead of it being off the shoulder, it has sheer long sleeves. He has to force himself not to stare. 

“No, actually, you two are the last of my older kids, but only because I was speaking to Lily and Cynthia beforehand,” Slughorn says, “You’re still early, no worries.”

“I don’t think I could be late anywhere going with Reg,” James laughs. Regulus floats his way over to the group of kids he knows, James continuing a conversation with Slughorn. He awkwardly stands next to Cynthia, trying to make his sleeve look a little more normal. He sees her looking on out of the corner of his eye.

“Try putting the shirt sleeve under it,” She comments, “That might work better.”

Regulus nods, rolling back his jacket sleeve and taking the brace off and carefully unfolding his shirt sleeve. He sees Cynthia look on in concern at the bruise, but she doesn’t say anything. He puts it back on, pulling the suit jacket over it and admittedly being much more comfortable.

“Thank you,” He answers, barely looking over at her. She smiles but doesn’t say anything else, the two continuing to uncomfortably pretend the other one isn’t there. The door opens again, Regulus looking over to see a girl walking in, dressed in a dark purple dress that goes down to about her knees, an outer layer of lace on the whole thing. She looks as young as she is, unlike the other boy with pink hair.

“Oh! Hello Delilah!” Slughorn greets, walking over to the door from where he was by the table with James. James makes his way back over to Regulus’ side, immediately pulling him into a conversation. 

“That kid has  _ pink _ hair,” He marvels, “A little weird with his outfit, right, Reg?” 

Regulus nods, amused with James’ fascination with the boy’s pink hair. They both look over at the sound of more voices entering the room, seeing two new girls walking in. Their height difference is the first thing Regulus notices of them, the shorter girl only being up to the taller’s shoulder. The taller girl has on high heels and a long sleeve burgundy jumpsuit, a decently thick belt around her waist. The shorter is wearing a black, off-the-shoulder, floor-length dress, velvet black gloves going up to her elbows. 

“Apparently no one knows what semi-formal looks like,” Cynthia remarks to no one in particular.

“Clearly,” He replies mindlessly, “Floor-length dress? A little much.”

“And a jumpsuit on the other one,” She adds, seemingly just as much on instinct, “Not quite what we’re looking for.”

Regulus lets out a small laugh, their small, accidental conversation dying off as they watch Slughorn say his hellos to both of them. Once he finishes he looks around at the group, smiling.

“Well, we’re only waiting on one more, but I expected him to be late,” Slughorn tells them, “I don’t think he’s been on time to my class a day this year.”

“He’s never on time,” The taller of the two newest girls comments. 

“Let’s sit in the meantime, so I can introduce you all once he gets here,” Slughorn gestures to the table, all of the seasoned Slug Club members walking over to search for their names. The newer kids are a little more hesitant, waiting until Adrien takes his seat first to take theirs. They all get settled as someone else bursts through the door. 

“I’m here! Almost on time!” He pants, notably speaking in an American accent, “What’d I miss?”

“Nothing, my boy, we’re just getting seated,” Slughorn points to the spot next to James, “I believe you’re right there.”

“Damn, I was hoping there would be no one between us, Evans,” James leans on the table, “Then you could talk to me all night.”

“No thank you,” She holds up a hand to him.

“Cold, wow,” The taller girl, who has taken her seat next to Regulus, comments, “Understandable, though.”

Both James and Lily look at her confused, neither of them appreciating the comment in the slightest. 

“You don’t have to stare,” She laughs, “I know I’m nice to look at.”

Lily sighs loudly, looking at Cynthia and shaking her head. Cynthia just laughs, the girl next to Regulus seemingly very upset with their disapproval of her commentary. Before she can say anything else, Slughorn takes his seat at the head of the table, looking around confidently at the rest of the group.

“Well, I think some introductions are in order!”


	78. 11-Year-Olds

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this chapter is long but you know what it's ok

“Who should I start with?” Slughorn looks around, “Well, let’s have my older students introduce themselves first, set an example.”

“I can start,” James offers, “Hi everyone, I’m James Potter.”

“I’m Lily Evans.”

“Regulus Black.”

“Cynthia Greengrass, hello.”

“Adrien Adler.”

“Wonderful, wonderful,” Slughorn praises. “Now,” Slughorn starts to gesture to each kid he introduces, starting on his right, “This is Quinn Biondello, Tessa Selwyn, Peony Perry, Delilah Lambert, Alistair Saunders, and Bram Vincent. All of them I believe, with some exposure to the environment, might make perfect dinner party guests in the future.”

“Interesting group, Professor,” James laughs, “Certainly continuing our legacy of a nice range of personalities at the dinner table.”

“That’s the fun of it,” Slughorn replies, “It’s not interesting if everyone is quiet. Although, nothing wrong with bringing a little bit of that to the table.”

“Quiet is bor-ing,” Alistair interjects, “Why be quiet when you can be loud?” 

“Interesting word choice, foreigner,” Tessa shoots from the other side of the table.

“I live here now, I’m not a foreigner,” Alistair argues, “Just because I lived in the States doesn’t mean I’m a foreigner.”

“Yeah, it kind of does,” Peony deflects, “You were born there, idiot.”

“Ok, let’s calm down,” Slughorn stops them, “No arguing at the table, that’s rule one.”

“We weren’t arguing,” Peony crosses her arms, “At least not yet.”

“Let’s keep it that way, Peony,” Slughorn taps his wand on the table, “For now, let’s get dinner started.”

House-elves walk in the room, floating plates behind them. They set them in front of everyone at the table before walking back out, just as they do every single dinner with Slughorn. 

Regulus grabs for his fork, Slughorn immediately noticing his wrist.

“What happened there, Regulus?” He asks, pointing, “You didn’t have that on Friday, did you?”

Regulus shakes his head, “Quidditch.”

“Ew, Quidditch?” Tessa cuts in, “I hate flying, it’s so dumb.”

“We do not support making fun of Quidditch here,” James jokingly counters, “You’re lucky Emma isn’t here, she would defend that game with her life.”

“Broken wrist?” Slughorn asks, ignoring the side conversation going on. Regulus nods. “How long will you be out for?”

“Madam Pomfrey said just this week.”

“Ah, good, you need to be alright for the game in a few weeks,” He laughs, “Although, I’m sure Emma told you that.”

Regulus nods, glancing over at James, who is in a very enthusiastic conversation with Alistair next to him. The two of them seem to be feeding off of each other's energy.

“Oh, I should tell you,” He looks to Bram beside him, “Bram, did you know Regulus also plays an instrument? He’s quite talented at piano, I believe you mentioned you play viola.”

Bram gives him the smallest nod.

“Musical talent is always something to be proud of, my boy, it can take you far,” Slughorn comments, “Regulus can tell you I’ve told him that quite the number of times.”

Regulus nods, trying to avoid the stare of Delilah on his right. Although, he can’t really when she says something to him.

“You play piano? Aww, that’s so cute,” She coos, “Do you know Beethoven?”

He looks at her slightly confused and nods, trying to figure out where she’s going with this.

“Oh! That’s nice,” She continues to gush at him, “I picked up piano a couple of months ago, I’m pretty good at it. How long have you been playing?”

“12 years,” He quietly replies, his voice smaller than he wanted it to be. Even though he’s sure she still heard that clearly, she dramatically leans in and cups a hand behind her ear.

“I didn’t hear that, you’re too quiet!” She whines, “Say it again.”

“12 years,” He repeats, barely louder. She leans in closer, and he tries to will his voice to be loud enough for her to cut it out, “12 years.”

“I can’t hear you! You need to be loud, just like this,” She demonstrates with her own voice, “I’m not weird, you can be loud.”

Great, she’s one of _those_ people.

He doesn’t even try to answer again, because he knows, even if he could force the words out, she would just whine about being too quiet. He just looks back to his plate, tensing when she taps him on the shoulder. 

“Come on, you have to tell me,” She prods, continuing to poke him. Knowing James would not see him staring, he reluctantly looks over at Cynthia, because as awkward as it is he really needs to get through an hour of this, and she knows she’ll help him.

She immediately breaks away from her conversation with Lily across the table, looking over at him, and then the girl next to him, “What’re you doing? Why are you doing that?”

“What? I’m getting his attention,” She stops poking him. 

“Why? What do you need?” Cynthia questions, “I don’t think repeatedly poking him is going to do any good.”

“I don’t want your attention, I want his,” She argues, “I was asking him how long he’s played piano, but I couldn’t hear his answer.”

“12 years, now don’t poke people, it’s rude,” She chides before going back to her conversation with Lily. 

Delilah huffs, looking back to Regulus, “You’re so quiet! Why don’t you talk more? Really hurts my feelings.” 

He doesn’t even try to answer her, the effort isn’t worth it. He just goes back to toying with his food. He can’t believe this 11-year-old destroyed his appetite, that’s ridiculous. 

“What are you boys doing?” Slughorn looks away from Bram, who he was talking to, to James and Alistair, who are both tipping their chairs backward while holding onto the table.

“We’re competing, Professor,” James answers, pulling his chair back on 4 legs. Alistair doesn’t do the same, continuing to try and balance. 

“This isn’t going to end well, nor should you be encouraging this, James,” Slughorn sighs, “Alistair.”

“Hold on, I’m-” He’s cut off by his chair falling backward and him hitting the ground, “Ugh! Ow!” 

“Alistair,” Slughorn scolds, “This is what I mean when I say that is destined to end badly. That is also _not_ what you do at a formal dinner table.”

“Sorry sorry!” Alistair gets up off the ground, putting his chair back upright and taking his seat again.

“I shouldn’t have put you next to James,” Slughorn shakes his head, looking over to Tessa, “Anyway, Tessa, how has your father been doing? I haven’t spoken to him in a little while.”

“Good, he said he got promoted last week,” She tells him.

He nods, “Wonderful, that’s wonderful, give him my congratulations for me.”

“I will, Professor,” She answers, sharing a glance with Peony that demonstrates she probably will not do that. Apparently, Regulus was watching too long because Tessa looks at him annoyed, “What’re you looking at?”

He raises an eyebrow at her.

Peony looks back at him, glancing over at Slughorn talking to Quinn, “You’re staring like a virgin right now.”

James almost chokes on his drink, putting it down and picking up his napkin to cover his mouth with as he tries not to laugh and fails miserably. Regulus just shakes his head and looks off to the table, really regretting not thinking of an excuse not to come. 

“She’s right,” Tessa agrees, Regulus seeing her nudge Cynthia next to her out of the corner of his eye, “Right?”

“Don’t tease Reggie, and definitely not like that,” She sighs, muttering, “I can’t believe I agreed to this.”

“ _What_ did you just call him?” Peony questions, looking between the two of them for a second, “Oh wait, are you two… You know…” She holds up her pointer fingers, pushing them next to one another over and over, “You know,” She changes her hand gesture, pushing her fingertips together on each hand and pushing her hands together, making kissy noises along with it.

Cynthia buries her face in her hands, Regulus seeing the tips of her ears go pink as he feels his own cheeks heat up. Regulus has now decided he hates 11-year-olds.

“Him? He’s not worth it,” Tessa bumps Cynthia again, “At least pick someone who’s rich.”

“We’re not together,” Cynthia looks up, “And you’re literally 11.”

“And at least I know to marry rich.”

“How do you know he’s not rich?” Cynthia shakes her head, “But it doesn’t matter because we _aren’t together_.”

“Hm,” Tessa stares at her judgmentally for a second, “I doubt it.”

“Professor,” Cynthia looks over at Slughorn, “May I ask you something a little strange?”

“Of course, ask away,” He smiles.

“How did you select the younger kids?” Cynthia asks, getting an annoyed look from Tessa next to her. 

“Well, each of them has a particular talent in a subject that I find quite impressive,” Slughorn answers, “And, as with your family, I know the Selwyn family quite well. Unlike with Julia, who you met last week, I believe these kids would not quite be prepared to meet the other half of our group so soon.”

“I think Emma would probably attack at least one of them,” James chimes in, “Not to mention Snape would too.”

“Severus and Emma are definitely two of my concerns bringing in new additions, but it’s no fault of theirs,” Slughorn dismisses, “Although, I think a slow introduction is best, so I’ll start with my friendlier students first.”

“We’re friendly?” Adrien asks, surprisingly the first time Regulus has heard him talk all night.

“Friendlier,” Slughorn emphasizes, “James is quite friendly, though, as is Cynthia.”

“She is friendly?” Peony questions, pointing to Cynthia next to her.

“Don’t be rude, Peony,” Slughorn scolds, “And Cynthia is very friendly, as long as you’re not rude to her.”

“What a cap-corn,” Peony comments, everyone at the table giving her a weird look.

“You mean Capricorn?” James asks.

Peony nods, “Yeah, whatever it’s called.”

“I don’t know much about astrology, but from what I’ve heard from Reg, Capricorns are nothing like that,” James puzzles, Regulus wishing he was sitting next to him so he could kick him for mentioning that. He knows exactly what’s coming next.

“You know astrology?” Delilah’s face lights up, looking over at Regulus, “What do you think my sign is? Guess, I believe in you.”

Regulus sighs, deciding he doesn’t really have a choice with the whole table staring at him. Regulus takes a shot in the dark, “Scorpio.”

“Aw, wait, try again,” She crosses her arms, “I’m not a Scorpio.”

“Pisces? Aries?” He guesses, grasping at really small pieces of her personality. 

She gasps, “Yeah! That’s right, Pisces. Wow, good job.”

“What am I?” Peony asks, Regulus suppressing a sigh of annoyance. He knows at least two more people are going to ask this, and he really doesn’t care enough to make anything else but his first guess.

“Aries or Leo.”

“I’ll give that to you, I’m an Aries, what about Tess?” She points at Tessa, who is no longer looking at him with daggers like she was before. That tells him enough to make his guess.

“Gemini.”

“How did you know that?” She leans forward against the table. Regulus just shrugs, because the answer to that is that she’s two-faced, and he’s sure she doesn’t want to hear that.

“Me! Me!” Alistair cheers, Regulus shaking his head a moment before completely guessing, since he only saw him stumble into the room and tip his chair over.

“Aquarius or Sagittarius,” Regulus shrugs.

“I actually don’t know my Zodiac sign, what is it?” He looks at Quinn, who completely averts his gaze.

“When is your birthday, idiot?” Tessa shoots across the table. 

“Tessa,” Slughorn warns, but absolutely no one acknowledges it.

“January 29th, the best birthday,” Alistair answers, “What is that?”

“Aquarius,” Regulus nods, about two seconds away from removing himself from this conversation when James decides he needs to chime in too.

“What’s mine, Reg?” He asks, a knowing smile on his face. Regulus just stares at him, unamused, James laughing, “Ok, ok, I’ll leave you alone.”

“That’ll always be impressive, my boy,” Slughorn laughs, “You have a strange ability to read people I’ll never understand.”

Regulus just forces a smile, watching as Quinn taps Slughorn’s shoulder, saying something to him. Slughorn nods, getting up from the table.

“I have to go talk to Quinn a moment, I trust you all enough not to light the room on fire,” He looks around the table, “Lily and Regulus are in charge, don’t get out of your seats, and leave them on all four legs, Alistair and James.”

The two of them laugh, Slughorn guiding Quinn out of the room. 

“Aw that poor thing,” Delilah coos, “It’s so sad he’s so quiet.”

“Quinn is _not_ quiet,” Alistair shakes his head, “He can talk, I’m telling you.”

James goes to say something, Regulus staring at him aggressively enough to stop him from saying it. At least James has partially picked up on his silent communication. 

James looks at Alistair, “Think you can balance the chair on _one_ leg?”

“Oh yeah I can!” Alistair replies, moving to hang onto the table and balance his chair on one leg.

“Potter,” Lily pinches the bridge of her nose, “Why were you invited?”

“I asked myself the same thing, Evans,” James leans around Alistair, “But yet, here I am.”

“Put your chair back on the ground,” Lily scolds, although Alistair doesn’t listen. Regulus doesn’t hear the rest of the interaction when Delilah unfortunately starts talking to him again. 

“I’ve always found the quieter kids nicer to talk to,” She shakes her head, “It’s so sad.”

Regulus pretends he doesn’t hear her.

“You know, you can talk to me,” She presses, moving a little closer, “I understand.”

Regulus, once again, doesn’t even look at her. He’s trying his best not to either get up from the table or kick her hard enough maybe it’ll knock some sense into her. She’s 11 and he’s 15, there’s a serious power imbalance in this situation and she doesn’t seem to care. 

“Ugh, you’re so quiet,” She huffs, looking off to annoy Bram across the table. Everyone looks over, though, when Lily gets up.

“Potter, we’re switching seats, come on,” She grabs her plate and her silverware, walking up behind James, “Come on.”

“Oh, ok,” James shrugs, grabbing his stuff and getting up, winking at her, “Anything for you, Evans.”

She just glares at him.

“I’m kidding, I’m kidding,” He laughs, “You can have my seat, it’s fine.”

She sits down, now next to Bram instead of Delilah. James takes her seat, the two trading glasses so they have the right water in front of them. James looks over at Regulus.

“Now we’re closer!” He smiles, “I felt weird having to scream across the table earlier, now we can talk whenever we want”

“I can’t wait,” Regulus jokingly deadpans, James laughing. Regulus smiles and rolls his eyes, going to grab his glass but getting stopped when Delilah decides she’s not done treating him like a baby.

“Aw, you smiled!” She gushes, Regulus looking over as James looks on, _extremely_ confused. 

“Why the-” He stops himself, “Don’t swear with the 11-year-olds, ok. Why are you excited he smiles? He’s, like, a person.”

“But he’s just so quiet! He’s done nothing but give me a straight face,” She crosses her arms.

“I wonder why,” James remarks, “Right, Reg?”

Regulus nods, looking up as Slughorn walks back in, Quinn following behind him, looking just as timid as he did when he left. They both take their seats, Slughorn looking between Lily and James.

“Did you two switch while I was gone?” He asks.

“Yes, we did, I just felt like a change of scenery,” Lily replies, Slughorn laughing.

“Whatever makes you comfortable, you know my seating isn’t rigid,” He looks at James, “I had originally planned on putting you there, so you could be a seat away from Regulus, since I know you enjoy talking to him.”

“And he likes talking to me too,” James points out.

“I’m sure he does, my boy,” Slughorn looks over to Bram and Lily, asking them something Regulus doesn’t quite catch. Instead, he’s focused on the escalating conversation between Peony, Tessa, and Cynthia.

“You know, Cynthia? That’s your name?” Peony clarifies.

“Yes, that’s my name,” She annoyedly answers.

“I don’t quite think that green is your color,” She comments, “Maybe an orange might be better, just not green.”

Cynthia keeps her expression solid, although Regulus knows that comment probably hurt her a little. 

“And the sheer sleeves,” Peony shrugs, “Not a choice I would have picked. I don’t know, I just think you should dress nicer, you know, as a girl.”

He watches Cynthia’s face contort into hurt for a moment, fiddling with the sleeves of her dress. Peony lays off of it, leaning back to talk to Tessa, the two falling into a conversation. Regulus just watches at Cynthia clearly struggles to keep composed. He knows how much comments like that tend to get to her, it’s been like that since he first met her.

Regulus reaches over and taps James on the arm, James looking over. 

“Hi Reg,” He smiles, “What’s up?”

“Can you tell Slughorn we’ll be right back? Me and Cynthia,” He asks, seeing James glance back at Cynthia.

“Why’re you leaving with her?”

“Don’t ask, just listen,” Regulus doesn’t answer him, and James gets the point. 

He nods, “I’ll cover you, it’s fine.”

“Thank you,” Regulus gets up, Slughorn immediately going to ask where he’s going.

“Reg said he and Cynthia will be right back,” James tells him, “They’re just getting air for a minute.”

“Totally understandable, just don’t be out for too long,” Slughorn tells them, Regulus nodding and walking over behind Cynthia, who looks up at him confused. He just gestures for her to follow. 

She gets up and walks behind him out of the room, Regulus shutting the door behind the two of them. Cynthia continues to stare at him in confusion.

“I heard what she said,” Regulus tells her, “I thought you needed a minute.”

Her face relaxes slightly and she nods, walking over to lean against the wall next to the door. Regulus watches her a moment before walking over to stand next to her. 

They stand in silence for a minute before Cynthia asks, “Do you think this dress looks bad?”

Regulus shakes his head, “You look really nice.”

She smiles at him before looking at the ground, not saying anything. She glances up, clearly thinking about doing something. Whatever it is, though, she doesn’t do it, pushing off the wall a minute later. 

“Let’s go back in.”

Regulus nods, following her back inside the room Slughorn has the whole table locked onto him, looking back when the door clicks back closed. 

“Come sit, come sit you two,” He gestures, both of them taking their seats again, “I’m teaching the younger kids about dress codes since we need a little lesson on that.”

Both of them nod, Slughorn continuing his lecture. Regulus steals a glance at Cynthia, seeing her mouth to him. 

“Thank you.”


	79. Hopefully

Regulus walks out of his Music class, not at all expecting someone to immediately yell his name.

“Reg!” James calls, Regulus looking over to see him beckoning to walk with him. Regulus sighs, figuring whatever it is it’s probably better than sitting in his dorm and studying the history of the Patronus by himself and walks over. “Hi Reg!”

“Hi James,” Regulus answers.

“Are you busy?” James asks, starting to walk off, Regulus falling in step with him.

“No,” Regulus replies, “Why?”

“Well, I was just wondering if you wanted to come hang out,” James proposes, “Mo- Remus isn’t feeling great, and Sirius has been keeping to himself today, so I don’t really have anyone to hang out with. Not that you’re my last choice or anything but- Just- Yeah?”

“It’s fine,” Regulus assures him, “I can’t go to Quidditch, so I’m not busy.”

“Perfect! That’s what I figured,” James happily replies, “How did Music class go, I would imagine that would be a challenge, right?” 

“Yeah, it was hard,” Regulus nods, “I tried to play with both, but I didn’t work. Everyone was really off because I couldn’t play the treble line.”

“Whatever that means, sounds less than fun,” James blindly agrees, “Anyway, I should warn you that our dorm might be a little tense, since, well, I’ll explain it more when we get there.”

Regulus nods again, having a horrible feeling that he is going to be walking into something he shouldn’t be involved in. He doesn’t stop walking with James, though, just mentally preparing himself for whatever might happen. 

They make their way all the way there with James just chatting about various things that happened in his day. James cracks the door open to his dorm just to hear a screaming match.

“-I just don’t understand what I’m doing wrong! And you’re not telling me, so that’s not helping at all!” Sirius screams, “Don’t get all grumpy with me and then all of a sudden decide that you don’t want to be anymore!”

“I’m not doing anything like that!” Remus, who Regulus didn’t even think could raise his voice, yells back, “I’ve taken my time by myself, and if you don’t want to spend time with me that’s fine, but don’t be a dick about it!”

James looks back at Regulus, mouthing, “See what I mean?”

Regulus nods, James sighing before turning back and slowly opening the door.

“Hey, what’s going on in here?” He asks, the yelling silencing from both parties. Sirius huffs and Regulus hears a bed creak. James continues inside, Regulus hesitantly following after him and shutting the door.

“Nothing,” Remus dismisses James, sitting on his own bed. 

“That didn’t sound like nothing,” James crosses his arms, Regulus deciding he wants no part of this and walking over to sit on James’ bed.

“It’s none of your business, James,” Sirius shoots back, “Just go have your nice afternoon with Reg, leave us alone.”

“My God, I just asked what happened, since we walked in and you two were screaming at one another,” James counters, “I think I have a little bit of a right to know what’s wrong, guys.”

“Leave it alone,” Sirius presses, “You don’t need to be involved in our arguments.”

“When you’re screaming in 5 minutes I will be-”

“No, you won’t because we aren’t going to be,” Remus stops him, “Now both of you stop talking about it, it was a nothing argument and you two are blowing it out of proportion.”

“We’re not!” Both of them yell back, Remus’ intensity increasing tenfold.

“Do not fucking yell at me!” He demands, “And yes you were.”

“James is just being a nosey asshole,” Sirius mumbles, unfortunately not out of earshot of James.

“What happened today?” James asks, “Why are you being so aggressive? Moony makes sense, but nothing is happening to you.”

“Oh, now I need to explain myself?” Sirius rolls his eyes, “I’m rightfully a little annoyed with you.”

James walks up closer, holding onto the post of Remus’ bed closer to Sirius, leaning forward slightly and lowering the volume of his voice, “Did something happen, Pads?”

“Nothing happened,” Sirius replies, no longer screaming but still just as aggressive, “Why would you assume that?”

“Because you aren’t normally this- I don’t know, stand-offish, I was just concerned that I walked in to a screaming match.”

Sirius just stares at James a moment, his eyes somewhere between annoyed and completely dead, before pulling himself up onto the bed completely and shutting his curtain. James looks over at Remus, whose head is in his hands. 

“What’s up, Moony?” James asks, turning so he’s wrapped around the bedpost and fully facing Remus.

Remus looks up, “I don’t know what’s got him like that today, I told him that I was super on edge and that I didn’t want to cuddle forever, and when you left it was alright, other than that little argument, but then when I said I wanted a little bit by myself, he started pressing all my buttons. I didn’t mean to yell at him but I did, and he yelled back, and that’s what you walked in on.”

“Nothing happened today, did it?” James questions, “He used to get all mad like that when his mum sent him shit, but I don’t think that would happen anymore, right?”

“I wouldn’t think so,” Remus shakes his head, “I didn’t see him with a letter today.” 

“Is today something bad?” James looks back at Regulus, “Do you know what’s going on, Reg?” 

Regulus shrugs. February 2nd means nothing to him, and it wouldn’t make any sense for their mother to write him. Although, he doesn’t get much time to think about it before Sirius’ curtain flies open, Sirius not looking at anyone as he gets up and goes into his trunk.

“What’re you doing?” James asks him, “What’re you getting?”

Sirius doesn’t answer, pulling something out of his trunk and pocketing it.

“No, no no,” Remus walks up to him, holding out his hand, “You’ll smoke the whole pack.”

“I don’t need your micromanagement,” Sirius deadpans, his voice weak.

“Micromanagement? I’m keeping you alive!” Remus argues, “You can take one and go smoke it, have a blast, but if you take the whole pack you’re going to come back empty-handed.”

“I can take care of myself, thank you,” Sirius goes to walk off, James grabbing his arm as he walks by. Sirius pulls his arm back and takes a couple of steps backward, “Leave me alone.”

“Sir-”

“Leave me alone!” Sirius yells, Remus squeezing his eyes shut and putting a hand on James’ shoulder. 

James looks back, “What’s wrong?”

Remus holds up a finger, swallowing before forcing out, “Migraine.”

“Oh shit, I’m not qualified for this,” James helps Remus sit on the bed, Sirius cutting out his attitude and pulling closed Remus’ curtain on two of the three sides, but Remus just gets up and walks off into the bathroom, shutting the door behind himself. 

James looks at Sirius, “Nice one, Pads.”

“I didn’t mean to do that, don’t blame me,” Sirius steps backward, “How would I know I would give him a migraine?”

“The full moon is in 3 days,” James reminds him, “And you were screaming at him.”

“It was not my fault, don’t blame me for that!” Sirius objects, “With you two on my ass it’s a little hard not to get a little bit upset.”

“All we’re doing is making sure that you don’t smoke an entire pack of cigarettes because you’re 17 and that will kill you.” 

“I can take care of myself, James, I don’t need someone babying me!” Sirius starts his way towards the door, James continuing to walk towards him, “Leave me alone James, I don’t need you right now.”

Instead of continuing to press, James backs off, looking almost hurt by Sirius’ comment. Regulus knows that’s not what he means, but he’s sure James took it in the exact wrong way. Regulus decides he’s stepping in, getting up and walking over to Sirius. 

“Don’t you dare try, Reg,” Sirius warns, “Stay out of this, it doesn’t involve you.”

Regulus holds out his hand, “You want to turn into Dad?”

Sirius stares at him a moment before annoyedly reaching into his pocket, pulling out the pack, taking one out of it, and handing the rest to Regulus. Sirius huffs before walking out of the room, shutting the door quietly behind him. 

Regulus turns around to see James looking particularly dejected, staring down at the ground. “James.”

He looks up, “Sorry.”

“It’s fine,” Regulus assures him, studying him a moment. He doesn’t think he’s ever seen James this timid. “What’s wrong?”

“Hm? Nothing, nothing it’s fine,” James looks over to his bed, thinking for a moment before walking over, “I can look for something to do, I probably have something.” His voice is notably without its normal cheer. 

“James,” Regulus presses, hoping James is like Sirius in this sense, “What’s wrong?”

James sighs in defeat, “It’s stupid.”

Regulus walks over and sits on the extra bed next to James’, “Tell me anyway.”

James shakes his head, not saying anything. He fiddles with the sleeve of his robes, staring aimlessly at the ground. He takes a deep breath, looking around and grabbing something off of his nightstand, toying with it in his hand and not saying anything. This is  _ not _ like James, something is wrong and Regulus has  _ no _ idea how to fix it. 

Regulus moves beds so he’s sitting next to him, looking over as James is lost in thought. “James,” Regulus tries for the third time, “What’s wrong?”

James sighs, shaking his hand out to the side, “Do you want to fly around or something?”

Regulus holds his hand up, “I can’t.”

“Shit,” He breathes, “I just need to do something, I don’t care what.”

Regulus shakes his head, “I don’t have anything, I’m sorry. I would offer to let you listen to me practice but I can’t play very well.”

“Yeah, yeah,” James runs a hand through his hair, “Uhh, sorry, you came with me to just hang out and I’m freaking out on you. I’m sorry.”

“It’s fine,” Regulus assures him, looking around the room for something to do. He doesn’t see anything before the bathroom door opens, both of them looking over to see Remus walking out, his arms curled around his stomach. He’s sweating and looks scarily pale. 

“Hey Remus,” James quietly greets, “Need anything?”

Remus shakes his head, getting into bed and laying down, putting a hand over his eyes. James looks at Regulus, clearly concerned. 

“Sirius normally helps Remus, I don’t know how,” James rubs the back of his neck, “Do you? Did he learn it from family?”

“Narcissa used to get them, but I never helped,” Regulus shakes his head, looking over at what he can see of Remus behind the curtain a moment, “Lily helped when it happened on Prefect Rounds.”

“Shit, yeah, can you get Lily? She doesn’t like me.”

“She doesn’t like me either but I’ll see if she’s in the Common Room,” Regulus gets up and goes downstairs, careful to shut the door quietly before he walks downstairs into the Gryffindor Common Room. There’s a  _ lot _ of people, all of them looking right over when someone in green walks down the stairs. He sticks out like a sore thumb, but luckily one of the heads that turns is Lily. Regulus gestures for her to follow him. She looks at him confused but follows, Regulus heading back up the stairs and walking back in the dorm. 

She looks at James, who points at Remus, “He has a migraine and we’re useless.”

“Oh,” She nods, Regulus going back to sit on the bed as she walks over to talk to Remus. 

“Should we leave them alone?” James asks, Regulus shrugging. “I think we should, come on, we’ll figure out somewhere to go.”

Regulus follows James back out of the room, glancing back at Lily, who is already darkening the room and tending to Remus. He’s going to  _ kill _ his brother.

James walks over to an open game of Wizard’s Chess, sitting down and gesturing to the chair across from him, “I’m horrible at it, but it’s something to keep us occupied if you’re not super against it.”

Regulus takes a seat, “I don’t care, I’m impartial.”

James smiles, stating his first move and starting the game. They play for a couple of minutes in silence, James only looking up from it when Lily goes up to her dorm and goes back. It’s extremely abnormal for James. He also is clearly starting to grow less and less focused, Regulus having to remind him a couple of times that it’s his turn. Eventually, Regulus decides he needs to ask.

“Is there something wrong?” Regulus asks, James looking up.

“Hm? Oh,” He shakes his head, “Sorry, just- A little off today, it’s fine.”

“Off how?”

“I don’t know, just off,” James shakes his head, “What Sirius said is bothering me.”

“He was being ridiculous, for the record,” Regulus comments, saying his move before continuing, “He was being an asshole.”

“I know, but,” James huffs, “I don’t know, I don’t know, it’s stupid. Shit like that gets to me a lot, it’s really stupid.”

“It’s not,” Regulus shakes his head, “Things can bother you, they don’t have to make sense.”

“But I know he didn’t mean it like that,” James runs a hand through his hair, “Sirius would never say he hates me or anything, at least I don’t think. But what  _ if _ that’s what he meant and I’m really annoying and nosey and not needed and- Ugh! This is so dumb, I’m sorry Reg.”

“It’s ok, I mean, I’m bad at advice, but objectively I can more than assure you that Sirius doesn’t feel any of those things about you,” Regulus pauses a moment, “But you’re completely right in feeling bad about it, Sirius should not have said any of that, mad or not.”

“I know you two have your sibling thing where you hate each other, but Sirius and I so rarely argue, and I mean, today was a bad example but sometimes I do the same thing to him and I feel horrible,” James admits, “But I just hate when we get into arguments because when we do it’s normally bad and it means something happened, I just don’t know-“ 

“Oi! James in here?” Marlene yells walking into the Common Room holding a clump of the back of Sirius’ shirt. 

“-What this time,” James quietly finishes, still looking over at Marlene, “Over here, Marlene!” 

“Oh, I caught you a brooding Sirius, plus,” She walks up next to them, handing James a letter, “This.”

James looks at the front, turning it around and widening his eyes when he sees the back.

“Give it back, it’s nothing,” Sirius holds out his hand, James hesitantly handing the letter back, “It’s who you think it is, it doesn’t matter.”

Regulus snatches the letter out of Sirius’ hand and walks off a bit, looking at what is undoubtedly the Black seal on the back of the envelope.

“Reg,” Sirius comes up next to him, “Don’t read it, you don’t want to.”

“Yes, I do,” Regulus insists, “I deserve to know.”

“You don’t need that on your mind,” Sirius takes it back, turning to go back upstairs to his dorm. Regulus just follows after him, hearing James rush to catch to keep up with the two of them. They walk back into the dorm, surprisingly seeing Remus sitting up and pleasantly chatting with Lily.

“Oh, hello,” Remus looks confused at the three of them, “Is something wrong?”

“Are you ok now? What happened?” James questions, shutting the door behind himself. 

“Oh, Lily had some of that miracle stuff Madam Pomfrey gives out, she doesn’t normally let me have the strong one around the full because she gets nervous with all the conflicting potions but I really didn’t want to feel like that for hours.”

“Hopefully it doesn’t kill you,” Lily laughs, getting up, “I’ll leave you guys to sort yourselves out, I’ll see you later Remus.”

“Thank you again, Lily,” Remus waves as Lily walks out of the room, looking between the three of them once the door closes, “What happened?”

“Pads,” James looks over, “You should show Remus.”

“You can’t read it,” Sirius tosses the letter on the bed, Remus having the same reaction James did. Sirius’ tough exterior is starting to melt, defeat creeping into his face. 

“Can’t?” Remus clarifies, “Why? You don’t live with her anymore, what’s in it?”

“Nothing,” Sirius takes it back, sitting back on his bed, “I’m taking a nap, maybe I’ll talk about it later.”

“We’ll be here if you need anything,” Remus softly tells him, “I love you.”

“I love you too,” He quietly replies before pulling closed his curtain, Remus looking back to James.

“That explains it,” Remus sighs, “His attitude is still a little unnecessarily sour, but at least we know why.”

“Hopefully we’ll figure it out,” James nods, silence falling over the room a moment before he looks at Regulus, “I feel horrible for sucking you into this, Reg, I’m sorry.”

Regulus shrugs, “It’s fine, you wouldn’t have known.”

“I’m still sorry,” James glances back before walking over to his bed, “Do you want to play a card game or something? I have a deck of cards up here.” 

Regulus shrugs, “I don’t mind.”

“Do you want to play with us, Moony?” James asks, tossing Regulus the deck of cards before walking over and sitting in front of Remus on the bed, Regulus sitting next to him.

“If it’s not fast-paced, count me in,” Remus shrugs, “Just don’t be offended if I tell you I’m done.”

“We won’t,” James says, shuffling the cards, before looking up and sighing, “Hopefully today gets a little better.”

Remus nods, “Yeah, hopefully.”


	80. Where's James?

“Reg!” A voice yells from behind Regulus, who turns around to see James rushing up to him, “Reg, hi!”

“Hi, James,” Regulus greets, slowing the pace he was previously walking in the Great Hall at.

“So, bad combination today, Peter is sick, Remus is bedridden, and Sirius refused to get up this morning, so I’m braving the day by myself,” James explains, “But I know you have your free period right now, and I was going to have lunch in McGonagall’s room and as much as I don’t mind eating with just her I would rather have you come with me. If that’s ok with you, of course.”

Regulus shrugs, “I don’t mind.”

“Yes! Come on, I’m hungry,” James turns them around, Regulus following him to Professor McGonagall’s room. They walk through the door, James pointing for Regulus to shut it behind him before happily walking up to where she is sitting at her desk.

“Mr. Potter, I see you’ve brought a friend,” She muses, “You did not steal him from a class this period, did you?”

“No, no I wouldn’t do that,” James says as he takes a seat in the chair in front of her desk, Regulus taking a seat in the other one. “I at least have a little bit of respect for other people’s education.”

“Not your own?”

“Never,” He laughs, putting his bag on the ground and pulling out some kind of sandwich. 

“Anyway, it’s nice to see you, Mr. Black,” She greets. He gives her a nod in response, electing not to say anything as James jumps into a conversation.

“Professor, our room has been  _ chaos _ for like three days, you won’t believe it,” He starts, “First off, it’s  _ tonight _ , which is ridiculous, and then Sirius has been all grumpy and wouldn’t get out of bed this morning, and today I woke up and Peter was sick!  _ How _ am I supposed to go through all my classes with none of my friends?”

“Pay attention, possibly?” McGonagall sarcastically suggests, “Although, it is rather unfortunate that all of this seems to be happening at once.”

“Yeah, it kind of sucks, we’ve had bad luck, right, Reg?” James looks over at him, Regulus nodding. 

“Well, try not to get sick, Mr. Potter, because something tells me you wouldn’t stay in your dorm if you were,” She comments.

“Yeah, I probably wouldn’t,” James laughs, “It’s not fun that way, you have to like, walk it off.”

McGonagall sighs, “Isn’t your mother a healer? Isn’t that your field of interest?”

“Maybe and maybe,” He replies, smiling, “But it’s fine, I have an immune system of steel, I never get sick.”

“Famous last words, Mr. Potter,” She says, “Do you have Quidditch this afternoon?”

“Uhh,” James looks at Regulus, “Are we practicing with you guys?”

Regulus shrugs and shakes his head, “I haven’t been to Quidditch all week, remember?”

“Oh, yeah yeah,” James nods, “I think we are, I think that’s what I said.”

“How do you not know?” McGonagall questions, “Don’t you need to keep track of these things in a position of authority?”

“It’s written on my calendar in our dorm, that’s how I keep track,” James tells her, “If it isn’t written down, it doesn’t happen, that’s just a rule.”

“I should know that from the work you turn in,” She comments, “It’s always coated in notes.”

“But it gets done, so you can’t complain,” James reasons, “I had a hard time coming back to school from the summer and remembering things, though, because I used Reg as my memory all summer. I would just tell him something like, ‘Remember I put my glasses on the counter’ so when I forgot where they were he would tell me.”

“You still do that,” Regulus points out.

“Ok, fair, but not as much because you’re not just like, accessible,” James justifies, “I can’t just yell down the hallway aimlessly and know you’ll probably hear it.”

“You seem like a wonderful person to have to live with, Mr. Potter,” McGonagall remarks, “Not at all a challenge.”

“No, no I’m actually a great person to have to be in the same house as,” James laughs, “I never do anything like make a lot of noise or ask a million questions, not me.”

The door behind them creaks open, interrupting their conversation. James and Regulus look back, Regulus seeing a familiar face peek in the room. 

“Sorry, should I come back?” Cynthia asks.

“No, you’re alright, we’re just chatting, come in, Ms. Greengrass,” McGonagall waves her in, “If you need them to leave I can kick them out, it’s not an issue.”

“Oh no, it’s fine,” She assures her, walking up to her desk and standing next to Regulus, “I’m in Care of Magic Creatures right now, I was voted to have to come all the way back to ask if you have some book on birds? Professor Cobb said you would.”

“Oh, yes, I borrowed it from her the other day,” McGonagall gets up, walking over to a shelf on the wall and taking a book off of it before coming back and handing it to Cynthia, taking her seat again. 

“Perfect, thank you, Professor!” Cynthia smiles, “I’ll see you this afternoon.”

“You as well, tell Professor Cobb I need that book back once she’s finished,” McGonagall tells her, Cynthia nodding, glancing down at Regulus a moment before walking out of the room and shutting the door behind herself. At least things aren’t tense between them. 

“Reg,” James turns to him, “When are you seeing Madam Pomfrey for that again?” He points to his wrist.

“Tomorrow,” Regulus answers, “Hopefully she’ll let me take it off.”

“So you’ll be able to play?”

“Probably not until Wednesday,” Regulus shakes his head, “Emma doesn’t want me overworking it.”

“That’s probably smart, especially since you guys are playing in, what, two weeks?” James asks, Regulus nodding. “Oh, that’s not fun at all, you guys are playing soon and you’re out of practice.”

Regulus shrugs, “I’ll be fine. It’s happened before.”

“Professor,” James looks at her, “Did you know Reg has broken his  _ collarbone _ before? I didn’t even know that was a bone you could break!”

“You can break any bone, but I digress,” McGonagall comments, “Although that does not sound pleasant, Mr. Black.”

Regulus shakes his head in agreement.

“Did you say you were young when you did that or did I make that up?” James asks.

“I never told you that, but I was,” Regulus answers.

“Well, at least I made it up right I guess,” He laughs, tapping his finger on the table and falling silent a moment.

“What’re you plotting, Mr. Potter?” McGonagall questions, drawing James out of his train of thought.

“Ok, ok, I need your opinion on something,” He starts, McGonagall looking at him skeptically.

“Is this going to be dangerous?”

“No! No I’m decorating,” He assures her, “So, I’ve explained the layout of my space in my dorm right?”   
  


***

Regulus walks into the Hospital Wing, looking around at the notably empty room, with the only exception of a divider blocking one of the beds. Considering there’s a cart sticking out, he assumes someone is there although he isn’t really interested in doing anything but getting this stupid brace off of his wrist so he can play piano again. 

Madam Pomfrey steps out from around the divider, looking over and smiling at him, “Oh, hello Regulus, I thought I heard the door close. Just grab a seat on that back bed for me like last time, I just have to finish this up.”

Regulus nods, walking back to the second to last bed like when he came in here the first time. He takes a seat, giving him a partial view of who is in the blocked bed, although half of the bed is blocked by another divider, and there’s no chance he can see that far. Damn his bad vision.

Madam Pomfrey walks over to him about a minute later, “Sorry about that dear, I had to finish up with him,” She pulls up a chair to the side of the bed, “Now, let’s see how that’s healing.”

Regulus holds out his wrist, letting her take the brace off and turn it over a couple of times. The bruise has lost its deep purple color, now starting to turn an ugly brown instead. It’s really ugly, but Regulus knows that the nice purple color normally means pain, so he’ll take it. 

“It certainly is looking a lot better, can you move around your fingers for me?” She prompts, Regulus flexing his fingers in and out, other than the stiffness from barely moving it for a week it’s much better. “Does that hurt at all?”

Regulus shakes his head, “Only a little.”

“You’re sure?” She presses, “You’re not lying so you can get out of the brace sooner?”

He shakes his head again, it really doesn’t hurt to the point of concern.

“Ok, wonderful,” She smiles, “A lot of that pain is likely just stiffness, but I’m going to throw one more healing charm on it, just to make sure.”

Regulus nods, Madam Pomfrey grabbing her wand out of her pocket and running it over his arm like she did last week. Although, this time it works a lot better, and when she has him flex his fingers when she’s done it’s almost like he never broke it at all. Well, minus the bruise. 

“Almost good as new,” She turns over his hand, looking at the bruise and sighing, “Although I don’t like this bruise, there’s not much I can do to fix it that I haven’t already tried. I think we’re just better off leaving it as is, letting it heal on its own. It shouldn’t be too long.”

Regulus nods, “Thank you.”

“Of course,” She gets up and puts the chair she was using back, walking towards the back of the room, Regulus standing but not moving. “I’ll give you this here, in case you bump it by accident I don’t want it to hurt too much,” She comes back and hands him something, “And be careful, don’t push it too much. You’re lovely, but the last thing I want is to see you in here again for the same injury.”

Regulus nods, “I won’t.”

“Good,” She smiles, “You’re free to go, have a nice day, Regulus.”

Regulus nods in response, walking about halfway across the room but stopping when two people catch his eye. Looking over at the only occupied bed, Regulus sees a very beat-up Remus, Sirius with his arms folded on top of him and his head down, asleep. Remus is running a slow hand through his hair.

“Hello Regulus,” Remus greets, his voice small and weak, “Can you come here a moment?”

Regulus hesitantly walks over, standing at the foot of Remus’ bed.

“Do you know if James had Quidditch today?” He asks.

Regulus shakes his head.

“Have you seen him at all today?” He tries, “I’m sorry, he just wasn’t here this morning and I don’t know why.”

Regulus shakes his head again, “I haven’t seen him since lunch yesterday.”

“Did he say anything then?”

“Nothing other than Quidditch, which he didn’t know if he had,” Regulus answers. 

“Ok, alright,” Remus sighs, looking down at Sirius a moment, “He’s been in a sour mood since Wednesday, and between me and sick Peter we were no help, so James was trying to keep up all of us. I think it got to him a little, but I’m bedridden until at least tonight. I just wanted to know if you knew how he was doing.”

Regulus contemplates making this offer before deciding that James has saved him on many occasions. “Do you want me to look for him?”

“If you’re not doing anything that would be great,” Remus replies, “You don’t have to, but-” Sirius moves over a bit, Remus’ face twisting in pain as he forces out, “Sirius! Stop it!”

Sirius immediately sits back, panickedly looking at Remus, who is clearly in pain. “What happened? What happened?” Sirius frantically asks. 

“You just need to be careful,” Remus says gritted teeth, taking a deep breath, “Alright, alright, you can lay back down if you want to, just not on that cut.”

Sirius’ expression hardens, just shaking his head and looking off aimlessly to the other side of the room. Regulus almost yells at him, because his attitude is really annoying, and Remus clearly didn’t mean any harm, he was just trying to save himself.

“So, you can do that?” Remus clarifies, “Again, you really don’t have to.”

“It’s ok,” Regulus assures him, “I’m not doing anything.”

“Thank you,” Remus smiles, although it’s small, “If you get a chance, would you mind coming back and letting me know? I’m just worried.”

Regulus nods.

“Thank you so much,” Remus glances over at Sirius, who looks angry, but Regulus knows that look means he’s on the verge of tears. Regulus thinks about leaving him alone but decides Sirius wouldn’t have left him alone.

“Hi, Sirius,” Regulus greets, although annoyedly.

“Fuck off, Reg,” Sirius looks over, “Why are you in here?”

Regulus holds his no longer braced wrist up.

“And how long did that take?” He shoots back, “What’re you doing here?”

“Watching you with your worthless attitude,” Regulus crosses his arms.

“Leave me alone, Reg.”

“You wouldn’t have left me alone,” Regulus points out, “Are you going to talk through it ever?”

“Reg.”

“Sirius.”

“Ok, calm down,” Remus stops them, “The two of you are welcome to argue, just please not next to my hospital bed.”

“Sorry,” Sirius mumbles, glaring at Regulus, Regulus just rolls his eyes before walking off, waving back at Remus. Remus doesn’t say anything, waving back before turning to talk to Sirius. Regulus doesn’t care to hear what it’s about, because it’s probably about him. 

He has one goal right now: Find James. 


	81. That Isn’t True, Right?

Regulus decides the first thing he should do is figure out if James has Quidditch or not. He didn’t think he did, but he really has only heard other people talk about it. He wasn’t kept up on plans because Emma is intentionally keeping him from showing up, although right now that’s not serving him well.

He heads to Gryffindor Tower, figuring it’s on the calendar on James’ dorm wall. And, bonus, there’s a good chance he’s there if he doesn’t have practice. He recites the password and ignores the weird stares from people in the Common Room, as much as they make his skin crawl he’s on a bit of a mission right now. He is surprised to find their dorm room unlocked, opening it slowly to see Peter laying on his bed, working on something. He’s surrounded by tissues, and the pink in his nose and general sluggish demeanor tell Regulus he’s still definitely sick. 

He looks up, “Oh, hi, uh, are you looking for something?”

Regulus idly nods, walking in and checking the calendar. Nope, there’s nothing written in the box for today except for a scratchy ‘Feel better Moony!’. Regulus looks back when Peter speaks up.

“Are-” Peter is cut off by a series of sneezes.

“Bless you,” Regulus mindlessly remarks.

“Thank you,” Peter replies, sniffling before continuing, “Are you looking for James?”

Regulus nods again.

Peter points to a piece of parchment on James’ nightstand, “Can you get me that piece of parchment?”

Regulus walks over, grabbing a piece of folded parchment and handing it to Peter, careful to still keep his distance. Regulus and any type of illness, even minor, always ends horribly. 

Peter grabs his wand, pointing it at the parchment and saying, “I solemnly swear I’m up to no good.”

The piece of parchment starts to gain color, ink spreading across it to display loopy handwriting on the front, behind it some sort of design Regulus can’t see from where he is. He doesn’t get a chance to make out what it says before Peter opens it, revealing what Regulus is sure is a map of the entire castle. He scans through the map at a surprisingly fast rate before pointing and turning it around.

“There he is,” Peter says, “He’s probably sitting in the window in that staircase.”

Regulus nods, studying the map a moment to try to figure out where he is in comparison to where James is.

“You can-” Peter sneezes another couple of times, “You can take the map. We’re right here,” He points to a spot on the map, Regulus moving a little closer and grabbing it to see two small labels, ‘Peter Pettigrew’ and ‘Regulus Black’. Only a little ways away is another label, ‘James Potter’. It’s not too far, but it’s a stairwell Regulus doesn’t recognize. 

“Thank you,” Regulus looks up.

“No problem,” Peter replies, “Hopefully you find him, he’s been a little down for the past few days.”

Regulus nods again, still trying to figure out how he’s going to get there. He doesn’t really know where it is.

“I would recommend going right out of here,” Peter suggests, “Just follow your tag on the map.”

Regulus locates the path Peter is talking about. “Thank you,” He says again, walking back out of the dorm and following the path on the map. Eventually, he reaches a corridor he never knew existed, at the end of it a door that opens to a huge spiral staircase. Regulus immediately hears what sounds like crying, climbing up a couple of flights to see a figure in a window pretty much even with the stairs, laying down in the windowsill with their legs up on the side.

“James?” Regulus calls, James looking over and violently wiping his face.

“Reg,” James sits up, “What’re you doing here?”

“Looking for you,” Regulus replies, walking up a few more steps so he’s a little bit closer, seeing how James’ face is tear-streaked and tired. 

“Where did you get that?” He points at the map in Regulus’ hands, “Who gave it to you?”

“Peter,” Regulus answers, walking up and standing just outside the windowsill, “Can I sit?”

“Oh, uh, yeah,” James moves over, Regulus taking a seat next to him, refolding the map he was using and setting it in front of him. “Why do you need me? Did something happen? Remus was fine this morning, did something happen with him? I think I have some-”

“James,” Regulus stops him, “What’s wrong?”

James shakes his head. “Nothing is wrong,” He lies unconvincingly. 

“Then why were you crying?”

James wipes his face again as if it’s going to get rid of the red rim under his eyes. “Nothing.”

“I’m not taking that as an answer,” Regulus shakes his head, James looking at him almost surprised. Regulus has never really been  _ firm _ with James before like he has with Sirius, but he really wants to get to the bottom of this issue.

“It’s nothing,” James continues to brush him off, looking out the window instead of at Regulus. Regulus doesn’t say anything, knowing silence is something James can’t stand, and eventually, he’ll have to fill it. 

Not even a minute late, James almost whispers, “I’ve just felt horrible for the past couple of days, it’s stupid.”

“Do you know why?” Regulus asks.

“I’m just, I don’t know, stressed I guess,” James says, keeping his gaze out the window, “Peter is sick, Remus was really bad yesterday, and Sirius has been telling me to leave him alone for about 3 straight days. I’m just worried for everyone, I don’t think I’m enough to help.”

Regulus nods, deciding that letting James talk at his own pace is better than Regulus’ prompting. 

“And I know that’s Sirius’ method of coping, he’s always been like that. When things get to him he shuts down and blocks everyone out and I know it’s not personal but it just feels like it’s my fault that I can’t help and I’m a horrible friend and,” James takes a breath, fresh tears starting to form in his eyes, “Normally Remus talks me down from it, and really just him being there is enough to remind me that Sirius is just upset, but he’s also been on edge and half-dead and Peter’s been sick so I’ve been trying to avoid him. When I saw you yesterday and that was probably the best I’ve felt since Wednesday.” James shakes his head, “I’m sorry, I’m sorry.”

“You’re fine,” Regulus assures him, “I’m listening.”

“You shouldn’t have to, it’s stupid,” James brushes him off, trying to wipe away the tears streaking their way down his face, “My friends are all struggling with real issues and I’m crying over the fact that their issues are stressing me out. It makes no sense, it makes no sense.”

“It makes sense,” Regulus counters, “You are completely valid in feeling like that, especially with Sirius. It’s rightfully draining.”

James just shakes his head, sniffling as he gives up on hiding the fact that he’s almost full-on sobbing. Regulus waits to see if he has more to say, but when James favors pulling his knees to his chest and burying his head in them Regulus decides he probably doesn’t want to talk more right now. Regulus taps him on the shoulder, inviting him in for a hug when he looks up. James immediately takes him up on the offer, burying his head into Regulus’ shoulder. Regulus isn’t really a fan of this, James is a little too close for his liking right now, but James really needs this. Regulus can feel it.

They sit there for a while, Regulus just letting James work himself through it. James never lets go, so Regulus never sits back.

“I’m sorry,” James mutters, “I’m sorry.”

“It’s alright,” Regulus assures him, James sitting back to look at him. His face is a mess, his hair sticking out everywhere, and his face all red. James is  _ not _ a discrete crier. 

“You shouldn’t have had to listen to that,” He leans back against the other side of the windowsill, looking down at Regulus’ arm, “You got it off?”

“Mhm,” Regulus nods, pulling back his sleeve to show James his arm, bare for the exception of the bruise.

“Ow, that bruise looks like it hurts,” James comments.

“Also, I didn’t have to listen to you, I wanted to,” Regulus corrects him, “You’ve listened to me before.”

“But your problems are like- Real. Mine are stupid,” He sighs, “My biggest complaint is that my friends are having a hard week, that’s the dumbest thing I’ve ever heard.”

“It’s not, your upset over something real,” Regulus replies, “It’s alright to be upset.”

“I just feel so  _ bad _ ,” James admits, “Like everyone is against me, but I know that isn’t true, right?”

Regulus shakes his head a moment, not quite equipped to talk James down from something he’s not the best at dealing with. It’s starting to make sense why James always needs someone to spend time with.

“I can hear Mum in the back of my head, scolding me for hiding,” He brings his knees to his chest and rests his head on them, “We used to have this empty cabinet in the kitchen, and whenever I got upset as a kid I would hide in there. Mum and Dad knew what it meant, and they would take me out, sit with me and have me explain why I was upset. And even if it made no sense I always felt better, and when I went away to school that person I would confide in became Sirius. I don’t know, when he gets defensive it just makes me want to board up and hide, which isn’t good for either of us. It’s better than it used to be but- I don’t know, I just feel like a shitty person when I do.”

“You’re not, you and Sirius both have unfortunate coping mechanisms,” Regulus says, “As long as you’re working on getting better, you’re doing all you can.”

“Yeah, yeah,” James nods, “We rarely get like this now, we normally talk things out and whatever, but when his mother gets involved…” James tapers off.

Regulus nods, “He’s always been like that.”

“He has?”

“Mhm, I have vivid memories of being 6 or 7, trying to shake him out of bed,” Regulus tells him, “I don’t understand it, but I don’t have to. It’s just what happens.”

James nods again, falling quiet a moment. He looks at least a little less burdened, enough for Regulus to put his attention on getting Sirius to snap the  _ hell  _ out of it.

“I’m going to talk to Sirius,” Regulus gets up, “You’re welcome to join.”

“Oh, you’re going?” James asks, clearly hurt, “Uh, no, I’m fine, I’ll stay here.”

Regulus is  _ not _ leaving him alone after he sounded so hurt by it.

“Come on, Remus wanted to see you, he’s worried about you,” Regulus replays, James looking up at him confused. 

“Remus? How do you-” He cuts himself off when he realizes, “Remus sent you, didn’t he?”

“I offered to find you when he said you down the past couple of days,” Regulus tells him, “Come on, he wants to see you.”

James nods, grabbing the piece of parchment and pointing his wand at it, muttering something before shoving the now blank parchment in his pocket. He and Regulus start to walk to the Hospital Wing, James eventually starting to fall into some story that Regulus thinks he’s heard before. 

They walk in, the divider down so they can see Remus and Sirius from the door.

“What are you two doing here? What happened?” Madam Pomfrey starts to walk over.

“No, nothing happened,” James replies, “We’re here to talk to Remus.”

“Oh,” She sighs, looking over at Remus, “Am I letting them in?”

Remus nods, Madam Pomfrey walking back off to what she was doing. James and Regulus head over to Remus’ bed, Remus smiling at both of them. Sirius is back to sleeping on top of him like he was before, although he’s holding Remus’ hand this time.

“Good to see you guys,” He greets, “I missed you this morning, Prongs.”

“I’m sorry,” James apologizes, grabbing one of the chairs and turning it so he’s sitting on it backward, leaning on the back.

“It’s totally fine, I get it,” Remus assures him, “I just wanted to make sure you were alive. Are you doing alright?”

“Mhm, I’m alright,” James nods, pointing at Sirius and looking at Remus questioningly.

“Asleep, well, probably not now,” Remus rubs his hand, “Are you awake, love?”

“Mmm,” Sirius slurs, picking his head up and looking up at Regulus, who stares at him aggressively. “What, Reg?” He tiredly asks, sitting back. Regulus just walks over and grabs Sirius’ arm, dragging him with him outside of the Hospital Wing. He makes sure the door clicks closed before saying anything.

“What the hell have you been doing?” Regulus challenges, “Why did I find James  _ crying _ in a stairwell?”

“What?” Sirius asks, “What do I have to do with that?”

“Because, apparently, you’ve been shutting him out of your life for days,” Regulus replies, “I don’t know what that letter said, but it isn’t enough to abandon your best friend.”

“You’re one to fucking talk, Reg,” Sirius challenges.

“No, we’ll talk about me later,” Regulus brushes him off, “I’m sure whatever mother said to you was horrible, but James feels like he’s the problem. And he’s not, you are. At least I admit that about myself.”

“Wow, you’re so much healthier than I am,” Sirius sarcastically replies, “I don’t want his help-”

“Yes you do.”

“No I don’t.”

“Don’t lie, you want his help more than anything, you just want to seem all silent and brooding,” Regulus argues, “Let James help you, and even if you don’t want to, at  _ least _ don’t make him feel horrible because you’re busy mourning a letter.”

“If you had gotten that letter you would have hid for days,” Sirius shoots back, “Don’t act better than me.”

“I’m not,” Regulus shakes his head, “Challenge, people don’t  _ care _ about me, so I can do whatever I want.”

“Reg-”

“Take advantage of it, Sirius, these people care about you,” Regulus’ voice softens, but only slightly, “Let them help, or at least let them know  _ nicely _ that you want time to yourself.”

Sirius sighs, rubbing his hands on his face and not replying. 

“So you’re going to walk back in there, sit next to James, and tell him what happened, and then  _ apologize _ ,” Regulus demands, not leaving room for Sirius to say no. He doesn’t care if he’s in no position to scold Sirius, he reluctantly admits that he cares about James and does not want Sirius to just get away with that. 

“Why are you the one telling me what to do?” Sirius asks.

“Because you can’t figure it out yourself,” Regulus answers, “Now that’s what you’re going to do, right?”

Sirius groans, “Fine.”

“Good,” Regulus starts to walk off, deciding he’s done his work here.

“Where’re you going?”

“Probably to play piano,” Regulus holds his hand up.

“Oh,” Sirius nods, “Well, thanks Reg- for snapping me back into it.”

“That’s what I’m here for,” Regulus turns back around, continuing to walk off.

“You’re still an asshole!” Sirius yells.

Regulus glances back, seeing Sirius smiling. “At least I care about your friends!” He calls back.

“At least I have friends for you to care about!” 

Regulus just laughs, turning around and flipping him off just before he rounds the corner. 


	82. Stay

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> cw: some creepy behavior in this chapter. it's nothing explicit, but it is a creepy dude so i thought i'd give fair warning

Considering Regulus hasn’t heard almost anything from James since Saturday, he deduces that they figured it out on their own. Although James not asking him to do various activities has limited the excuses he has not to study for the one thing in Defense Against the Dark Arts he’s been dreading since they learned about it: A Patronus. 

Regulus jumps when someone taps him on the shoulder, looking beside him to see Cynthia walking up, holding out a piece of paper. He takes it and she walks off, Regulus staring confused before shaking it off and looking down at the paper. 

_We don’t have to talk about it yet, but I would love a study buddy this afternoon, studying with V is boring and studying alone is unproductive. Plus I’d really love to have your company._

_You don’t have to, but I’ll be in the library at 7._

Regulus almost knocks into some Slytherin First Year staring at the note, in awe of the fact that she would even ask him for that is a little shocking. It means one important thing though: She’s not mad at him. He originally had blocked out this afternoon to play a little, since he’s been deprived of piano for a week. But he’s absolutely dropping that for Cynthia, no questions. He’ll probably be nervous as all hell, but he refuses to hurt her again. 

Lost in thought, he actually knocks into the worst person to do that ever, Amais Avery.

“Watch where you’re going, Black,” He scoffs, “What do you have in your hand there?” He reaches for it but Regulus pulls his hand away. “Testy today, huh? Give that to me.”

Regulus shoves it in his front pocket and goes to walk off, although Avery is having none of that. 

“Hey! Don’t walk away from me!” He yells at him, “I asked you a question, Black, don’t you listen?”

Regulus just keeps walking away, hoping eventually Avery will give it up with all these people around, but he doesn’t.

“Little Black thinking he’s getting away from me,” Avery pulls on the hood of his robe, causing Regulus to have to take a couple of steps backward to keep his balance. He keeps stern though, continuing to walk away. “Black!” Avery grabs his collar this time, Regulus freezing until he hears someone yell.

“Mr. Avery! Come here!” Professor McGonagall booms down the hallway, every head turning their direction. Regulus just keeps walking, hoping that no one looks at him and instead focuses on whatever is happening to Avery behind him. 

He checks his watch, he has 5 minutes until he needs to be in Ancient Runes, which is only a little ways away. If he walks fast, he buys himself 2 minutes to panic in an empty corridor before class starts. 

It’s good enough of a plan for him. 

He’s really rooting on seeing Cynthia later. 

***

Regulus walks into the Library, scanning the tables for Cynthia. He finally sees her in the back corner, at one of the studying corners that are simply cushioned with a low table rather than a normal study table. She’s not wearing her robes, rather one of the loose sweaters he remembers going with her to buy at Hogsmeade. He shakes his nerves off, reminding himself that it’s just Cynthia, he’s done this a million times before. 

She looks up and smiles, “Hello Reggie!”

Regulus takes a seat next to her on the other side of the corner, “Hey Thia.”

“Did you finish the Arithmancy work?” She asks, “I’m done with it, but I don't think I did it right, I just want to check.”

“Yeah, here,” He reaches into his bag, pulling out the sheet he finished last night for Arithmancy, “I did the whole thing, ignore that.”

“You did the whole thing?” She looks at him shocked, “That’s 50 questions!”

“I had nothing else to do,” He shrugs, “I couldn’t play Quidditch or piano.”

She nods in realization, “Oh yeah, ok, makes sense. I can tell you did this with your left hand, considering I can barely read it.”

“I was handicapped,” He laughs, savoring the warm feeling of hearing her laugh in response. 

“That bruise was nasty, do you still have it?” She questions, looking as Regulus pulls up his sleeve. “Holy- Goddamn, that looks like it hurts.”

Regulus shakes his head, “Not really anymore.”

“Are you going to Quidditch tomorrow?” She asks, starting to check her work against his. 

“Depends on what Emma says, I’ll have to ask her tomorrow,” Regulus replies, pulling out his Defense Against the Dark Arts textbook, “Probably though.”

“That’s good since you have to beat Ravenclaw next week,” Cynthia comments, “Although, they got crushed by Hufflepuff, so I think you’ll be fine.”

Regulus nods, “That’s the hope.”

They fall silent for a moment, both busy with what’s in front of them. Regulus doesn’t let himself get too happy to have Cynthia back beside him, because as much as he really wants to he’s still afraid it’s all fake. That she really despises him. It’s irrational, but he can’t shake the thought. 

After about 5 minutes, where Regulus manages to read one paragraph out of his textbook, Cynthia turns the paper she’s looking at around and points, “What number is that?”

Regulus looks over, “6.”

“6? How the hell did you get 6?” She mutters, looking between her sheet and his and shaking her head. 

He gestures for her to give it to him, “Can I see?”

She slides her paper over, Regulus looking at the one she’s confused about and immediately spotting the issue. He passes it back and points at the spot.

“You swapped your vertical and horizontal sums,” He tells her, her nodding as she registers the mistake.

“Ohhhh, whoops, thank you, Reggie,” She looks up and smiles at him before going back to fix it. He goes back to what he’s reading, trying to hide how smiley he is from that interaction. He came here to study, he really _needs_ to be studying.

Once he shakes himself of the giddy feeling, he’s actually managing to start to get a fair amount of work done. He’s caught himself up on the Defense Against the Dark Arts chapter he neglected to read this weekend and he finishes up the Ancient Runes work he wasn’t present enough to do with any accuracy. He and Cynthia don’t share more than a couple of words, asking for things the other one has or checking something on the other’s paper. Even not talking, Regulus did _not_ realize how much he missed just being around her.

He looks up when he sees someone walking up to them, taking a seat next to Cynthia. Cynthia looks over, a little surprised, “Oh, hi Chris?”

“That’s me, Candy, don’t act so surprised,” He replies, “What’re you doing? More Arithmancy?”

“No, I just finished checking it,” She replies, slightly subdued from her normal tone of voice.

“Checking it?” He asks, moving a little closer, “You don’t trust me, Candy?”

“No, I do,” She moves the other direction away from him, “I just wanted to check it against someone else’s work, just to make sure.”

“Well, I’m guessing it was all right? You’re quite smart, picked it all up quickly,” He compliments, putting his hand on top of hers on the table. She moves even farther from him and pulls her hand into her lap, Regulus picking up on her clearly discomfort. He doesn’t have the confidence to say anything, though.

“There were a couple of mistakes, but nothing big.”

“Hm, you’re sure the person you were checking it against wasn’t wrong?” He prompts.

“No, I’m sure his were right-”

“His?” He questions, quite aggressively before his voice falls back into its previous smooth rhythm, “Can I check them over again, then? See what was wrong?”

“Yeah,” She nods, pulling the paper out of her bag and setting it on the table in front of the two of them. Chris leans in to look at it, placing a hand low on her back as he does. She visibly stiffens, pulling the arm closest to Regulus across her chest to rest her hand on her shoulder. Regulus has a horrible feeling he knows why.

He keeps his hand there for a little too long, only taking it away when Cynthia says something, “Can you please not put your hand there?”

“Oh, you know I would do nothing to you, Candy,” He takes his hand away, “But if you insist.”

She doesn’t relax, keeping one eye on him as he grimaces at the paper. 

“Whose work did you check this against?” He asks, looking up at Regulus and pointing, “His?”

“Mhm,” She nods, “Oh, this is Regulus, he’s one of my friends.”

“One of your friends? Hm,” He stares at Regulus with a certain level of judgment Regulus is _not_ ready to endure right now. He leans over right next to Cynthia’s ear and whispers, “Really? Him?”

She moves back and looks at him, furrowing her brow in confusion, “Yeah, he’s studying with me. Do you need something?”

“Don’t be so aggressive, Candy, it doesn’t suit you,” He leans in closer, resting his hand too high up on her thigh. Something inside Regulus sets on fire and he grabs all their stuff, shoving it in his bag before standing up with both his bag and Cynthia’s and grabbing Cynthia’s arm. She more than willingly lets him drag her out of the Library, ignoring Chris’ very aggressive “Hey!” that’s immediately shushed by the librarian.

Regulus doesn’t stop walking, looking over at a clearly distressed Cynthia who is practically shaking. Regulus only stops when he hears the door they just came out of slam closed. 

“Hey! Where do you think you’re going!?” Chris booms down the hallway. Regulus glances back, seeing Chris’ wand out and letting his anger get the better of his anxiety. He pulls out his own wand and turns completely around. “Oh, he’s cocky!”

“Reggie,” Cynthia pleads, although it doesn’t sound very convincing. He ignores her, deflecting a spell from Chris. This’ll be nothing, this kid clearly doesn’t know where Regulus is from. 

“Come on, Candy, you know it’s all play, tell him to stop,” Chris teases, which completely changes her tune. She gives him a small nod, permission enough for him to absolutely destroy this guy. He doesn’t cast the first thing that comes to mind, because as much as he knows how to cast Crucio, he won’t do it.

“ _Oscausi,_ ” He quietly casts, skin replacing Chris’ mouth as if it were never there. Regulus disarms him, casts a quick sticking charm on his hands and flicks his wand, promptly pushing them together. Chris panics trying to pull them apart, Regulus deciding that’s enough of Bellatrix’s favorite curses for one afternoon. He tucks his wand back in his pocket and rehooks his arm with Cynthia’s. 

Her eyes do not leave the ground the entire walk back to the Slytherin Common Room, Regulus not saying a word the entire way back. Granted, he probably couldn’t if he wanted to, he’s expended all his confidence in about 3 minutes. They walk into the Common Room, Regulus looking over at Cynthia for where she wants to go.

“My dorm,” She whispers, “Please.”

He nods, walking her up to her dorm room. The second she walks in she heads right for the bed, taking a seat next to Turtle, who looks just the same as Regulus last remembers her being. The room hasn’t changed much either, save for a couple of new photos hanging on the walls. He sets Cynthia’s bag on her chair, deciding the last person she wants to spend time with is him. 

“Reggie,” Cynthia calls, stopping him with his hand on the doorknob. He looks back at her, teary-eyed, and pointing at the spot next to her, “Would you mind staying?”

Regulus doesn’t even think of saying no, setting his bag by the door and walking over to sit on the bed, Turtle in between the two of them. Cynthia doesn’t say anything, simply petting Turtle as silent tears fall down her face. Regulus doesn’t know what to do, so he just sits there, hands in his lap.

“That kid,” She starts, “He’s Lily’s friend. I’ve never liked him, I’ve always found him weird. He’s done stuff like that to me since I met him 2 years ago. He’s never laid a hand like that on me, though, I think it was…” She trails off, looking at Regulus.

“Me?” He finishes, Cynthia nodding. He doesn’t say anything else, there’s nothing else to say, it was his fault.

“It’s not your fault,” She shakes her head, looking back down to the cat beside her, “I should have seen it.”

“No,” He stops her, “You aren’t responsible for something like that.”

“I’ve always known something was off.”

“Doesn’t change a thing,” Regulus maintains, “It’s no one’s fault but his.”

Cynthia looks up at the ceiling, shaking her hands out for a minute before looking back down. “Ugh, I just want to carve my skin off,” She shakes her head, “I’m sorry, that sounded so weird.”

“No, I know what you mean,” He assures her.

“God, I just need to replace it,” She looks around the room before getting up and looking back at Regulus, “Are you busy?”

Regulus shakes his head.

“I’m going to take a shower, would you mind staying?” She asks, “I just- I want to be with someone else, I’m sorry.”

“It’s fine,” He reminds her, “I’ll be here.”

She sighs, “Thank you.”

He gives her a small smile, watching as she gathers new clothes and walks off into the bathroom, the shower starting just after the door shuts. Regulus falls back on her bed, takes a deep breath. Everything just happened so fast, and now he’s in Cynthia’s dorm room, where he promised her he’d stay. And she’s in the other room, showering, after all of that. It’s good to know she still trusts him because he doesn’t think he could take it if she didn’t. 

He starts to card a hand through Turtle’s fur, something he hasn’t done in a long time. After about 5 minutes, she climbs on top of his chest so she’s sitting right in front of his face. He’s not really fully on the bed, with his feet still hanging off, so Turtle laying on top of him is really bending him weirdly. The pressure on his chest makes him laugh, though, for some odd reason.

The bathroom door opens, Regulus looking back to see Cynthia smiling at him, her hair dripping wet and dressed in some baggy clothes he’s seen her wear before, but only in her dorm. 

“Aww,” She coos, walking over to sit on the other side of the bed, “Are you laying on Reggie, Turtle?”

Turtle, just looks up at her, inviting a second hand giving her scratches on the head as Regulus pets her back. 

“She missed you so much, right my girl?” Cynthia gushes, leaning in to give Turtle a kiss on the head and promptly getting Regulus all wet.

“Thia!” He holds his hand up, laughing, “Your hair is still wet.”

“Oh, I’m sorry,” She pulls her hair over to one side, “I forgot I didn’t braid it, well, maybe you needed a little shower.”

“Not from your hair,” He answers, trying to urge Turtle off of him so he can sit up. She reluctantly gets off, Regulus sitting up and kicking his shoes off so he can pull himself up fully on the bed. Cynthia is toying with the ends of her hair, her face seemingly lost in thought, and it doesn’t look like a good one.

“Are you going to braid it?” He asks, Cynthia looking up and shrugging. “Do you want me to?”

A smile spreads across her face and she pulls a hair tie off of her wrist, handing it to him and moving so she’s sitting in front of where he is, her back to her. Regulus carefully braids her hair loosely back, careful not to catch any of the knots she didn’t brush out. She doesn’t complain when he does, though, she doesn’t even make a sound. He ties it off at the end and drops it, expecting her to turn around. 

He’s surprised when she leans back against him, grabbing his arms and wrapping them around her. She leans her head back against his shoulder, looking up at him. She’s close, she’s really really close, but he forces himself to sit in the flustered discomfort. 

“I missed you a lot, Reggie,” She says, her voice quiet, “I really did.”

He just stares back at her, unable to say anything. He feels so weird _knowing_ she knows how he feels about her.

“And I’m sorry, for what happened in that room but-”

“I don’t want to talk about it,” Regulus stops her, “Not yet.”

She pauses a moment before nodding, looking off forward, “That’s fine, yeah, I understand that. But I’m done ignoring one another, I think we’ve had enough space, don’t you?”

Regulus nods.

“We’ll ignore everything either of us said Saturday until you’re ready,” She assures him, looking back up at him, “But for now, you’ll still stay, right?”

Regulus doesn’t even hesitate to answer.

“I’m not going anywhere.”


	83. Expecto Patronum

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> patronuses are stupid so i'm doing whatever i want with them

Regulus walks into Defense Against the Dark Arts, going over to grab his seat next to Cynthia. 

She looks over at him, “What took you so long to get here?”

“James,” Regulus replies, pulling out his textbook, “He went to tell me and started talking my ear off.”

“Sounds about right,” She laughs, “How are you feeling about today’s lesson?”

He sighs, “I haven’t decided yet.”

“I think you’ll do great,” She smiles, “You’ve got quite a number of happy memories to choose from, so I think you’ll get it.”

“I’m hoping,” He agrees, looking up as Professor Moore hops down the last step from his office.

“Hello class!” He happily greets, running his hands together as he walks up to the front of the room, “Today’s class is going to be a fun one! Today is the big day, we’re working on Patronuses. Now, it’s going to be chaos in here, so we need to remind ourselves of the ground rules we thought of last time. Number one, who can tell me?”

A Ravenclaw girl in the back row raises her hand.

“Yes! Sarah.”

“Leave other people alone,” She recites.

“Thank you!” He cheers, “Number one rule, let your classmates figure things out on their own. They don’t want your comments, they don’t want your help unless they ask for it. I will be listening, I mean it. Now, next rule.”

“If you can’t get it that’s ok,” A girl in the front row calls out.

“Perfect, that’s right. We’re not here for just getting it, we’re here to try. A full-bodied Patronus is a hard spell, so if you can’t get it today that’s alright,” He smiles, “Now, last rule!”

“Don’t forget the worksheet,” A boy right in front of Regulus says.

“Yes!” He clasps his hands together, “As long as you fill that out, you get full credit for today. Now, you all should already have your memory, however, I will allow you 5 minute amnesty time where I will not get mad at you for not having your wand out.” He points back behind Regulus, “Yes, Vaughn?”

“Is this all we’re doing all class?”

“I want to have a small discussion at the end, but I have no lesson plan today so yes, it is.”

“Brilliant, thank you,” He replies, going back to talking to the girl next to him.

Moore nods, “Excellent, are we all ready to learn what we’re doing?”

The class all nod, some of them making various affirming noises. Professor Moore flicks his wand back and spins the board, the header reading ‘Tips for Casting a Full Body Patronus’.

“Now, let’s first start with the memory…”

***

Regulus lazily waves his wand again, nothing more than a shimmer of blue falling out of the end of it. He glances around the room, where a few other people have their various full-body Patronuses dancing around the room, most people sitting on tables and leaning against walls like he is. Cynthia in front of him is smiling with determination, dead set on getting it right. He, however, is not so determined.

“Damn! I almost got it!” She spins her wand around her fingers, looking over at Regulus, “How’re you doing?”

He casts “Expecto Patronum” again, showing her the little progress he’s made.

“Aww, you have to be enthusiastic!” She replies, “What’re you thinking of?”

“I change it every time,” He shrugs, “I don’t really have a lot of  _ good _ powerful memories.”

“You have to have a couple, I  _ know _ you do,” Cynthia walks up so she’s standing right in front of him, “What about going home for Winter Break?”

“Tried that.”

“Your birthday this summer?”

“That one too.”

“Something with Dora?”

“They aren’t strong enough,” He shakes his head, “I don’t have much to work with.” He pauses, getting  _ one _ more idea of what he could use, “I have one more I haven’t tried.”

“Do it,” She holds a finger up, “Actually, let’s do it at the same time, maybe we can like, feed off of each other's energy or something.”

“That’s not how this works,” He shakes his head, pushing off the wall he’s leaning against. She just rolls her eyes, pointing at the spot in front of her for him to stand in. He looks up at her, who is smiling from ear to ear with excitement. 

“Ready?” She smiles.

He holds up a finger, closing his eyes and pinpointing exactly what he needs to think of. The piano room, Cynthia on one side of him, Dora on the other. James is yapping away to Sirius, just quiet enough to not be annoying. The room is filled with the soft sound of the piece Cynthia loves as the weight on his side and his shoulder provide a warming comfort. He surrounds himself in that happiness, that comfort, that feeling of home. And when he looks back up at Cynthia, he  _ knows _ he has it this time.

“Mhm,” He nods.

“3...2...1…” Cynthia counts down, both of them calling at the same time.

“ _ Expecto Patronum _ !”

Out of his wand comes a wispy blue lion, seemingly running on air. From Cynthia’s wand comes a lioness, the two animals dancing around one another. They run around the room in the air, weaving in and out in front of one another before the lion stands in front of the lioness, roaring before both run off and disappear from the room as shimmery blue particles. The entire room has stopped, staring at the two of them as they both marvel at what they created. 

“It looks like we have a pair of twin flames on our hands!” Professor Moore cheers, “Wow, you two, talk about impressive! Corresponding Patronuses represent a very strong connection between two people.”

“Doesn’t it represent love?” Sarah asks from the other side of the room. Regulus feels his entire fact heat up, looking down at the ground and avoiding the eyes of everyone in the room. 

Moore laughs, “Yes, in fact, it most often does, although I believe we can leave that out of the explanation right now, let’s not make Regulus and Cynthia uncomfortable.”

It’s way too late for that. It’s way way  _ way _ too late for that.

“As you all were, though, don’t stare at the two of them. You have 10 more minutes before we come back together!” Professor Moore waves them off, walking over to grab a seat on the table facing the two of them, “You two have to have a really special bond for your Patronuses to connect like that.”

Cynthia nods, Regulus awkwardly folding his arms tightly over his chest. He avoids eye contact with either of them, keeping his gaze off to the side. It was exciting for about thirty seconds, now there’s a pit of anxiety in his stomach from all the people glancing over at them.

“Although, I do recognize that was a little bit of an unfortunate situation in front of the whole class,” He pauses a moment, “Regulus, something wrong?”

Regulus looks up at him, shaking his head.

“Hm, do you two want to work out in the hallway for a little while? I’ll call you back in, but I think the hallway would be a better place to be working on perfecting that Patronus,” He offers, Regulus looking over at Cynthia to answer.

“Sure, Professor, that would probably be good,” Cynthia nods, “Thank you.”

“Of course of course,” He smiles, getting off the desk and walking to the other side of the room to yell at someone else. Regulus walks over and grabs what he needs to finish up the assignment and leaves the room as fast as socially acceptable. He sets everything down and sits with his knees to his chest, his skin crawling with every eye that was just looking at him.

Cynthia comes out a second later, “Hey Reggie.” She grabs a seat next to him, “Are you alright?”

He nods. He’s fine, that was just a very overwhelming experience.

They sit in silence for a moment before Cynthia asks, “What did you think of?”

Regulus looks over, “When you came over, over Christmas break. It was all of us in the piano room. It was all the things that make me happy in one place.”

She nods, “That’s a good one, yeah.”

“What’d you use?”

“When you met Turtle, on the train in Second Year,” She smiles, looking off in front of her, “I had such a shitty summer and Turtle was the only good thing to come out of it, I was just thrilled to watch the two of you meet. And I swear, the smile on your face is plastered in my head.”

“Thia,” He groans, burying his head in his hands. 

Cynthia just laughs, “What? You asked!”

“You’re impossible,” He shakes his head, leaning it back against the wall. He losses himself in thought for a moment, unable to shake the warm feeling that he was a big part of her most powerful memory. Cynthia’s life was not like his, he has very limited content to pick from. But she doesn’t, and she  _ still _ chose him.

“What’re you thinking about there, Reggie?” She asks, Regulus snapping back into reality.

He shrugs, “Nothing really.”

“I think it’s something, but I’ll leave it alone,” She concedes, “Can I ask you something, though?”

“What is it?”

“I know you’re not one for this class, but corresponding Patronuses are really distinct and they pretty much always mean a romantic connection-”

“I don’t want to talk about it,” He stops her. He doesn’t feel like getting rejected right now, he’ll deal with it later. 

She sighs, “Please?”

“Not now,” He maintains, “Later.”

“Alright, that’s fine,” She nods, “Yeah, that’s fine.” Silence falls between the two of them for a moment before Cynthia speaks up, “We should probably do this sheet, shouldn’t we?”

“Yeah, probably.”

***

Regulus knocks on James, Sirius, Peter, and Remus’ dorm room door, hoping that James is in there. He knows he doesn’t have Quidditch today because it has been storming all day, so no captain would elect to practice in this weather. 

He hears voices argue inside before the door opens, Sirius on the other side. 

“Oh, I was expecting someone a little more blonde,” He says, “Hi Reg, do you need something?”

“Are you guys busy?” Regulus asks, considering he hears music playing and it’s a Friday night.

“Not really, why?”

“Who is that?” James asks from somewhere further in the room.

“It’s Reg-”

“Reg is here?” James questions, “Well let him in, I want to say hi!”

“James wants to talk to you now, so I’m hoping that’s what you wanted,” Sirius walks back to sit on the bed and wrap himself around Remus, Regulus walking in the room and shutting the door behind him. Knowing James, he’ll be here for a while.

“Reg! Hi!” James wave, “I haven’t talked to you  _ all week _ , it’s been a while.”

“We talked Wednesday,” Regulus reminds him, sitting on their extra bed next to James’.

“Oh, yeah we did didn’t we?” James laughs, “Well, that’s forever for me. What are you all the way over here for?”

“Didn’t you do Patronuses today?” Sirius asks from the other side of the room, “I’m guessing that’s why you’re here.”

Regulus nods, “Mhm.”

“Nailed it,” He takes another sip of the cup in his hand, “So, tell us what happened, what’s your Patronus?”

“My Patronus is a lion,” Regulus answers, hesitating a second, “And Cynthia’s is a lioness.”

Everyone’s face in the room flashes with surprise, James’ lighting up particularly bright. “Oh my God, they match!”

“Oh, James knows quite a bit about matching Patronuses,” Sirius comments.

James nods, “Guess what, Reg?”

“Hm?” Regulus asks, very confused about what is so exciting for him. 

“Not to credit fate, but me and Lily’s Patronuses match. I’m a stag, obviously, and she’s a doe,” James tells him, “You’re turning into me, that is so funny! What did she say about it?”

“I told her I didn’t want to talk about it,” Regulus answers, “I don’t want to hear her opinion on that.”

“You don’t want to get rejected,” Sirius corrects him.

Regulus gives him an annoyed stare, Sirius giving him one that tells him he knows he’s right. Regulus just rolls his eyes, looking down at his hands that are fiddling with his sleeve. He suddenly has a deep sinking feeling in his chest.

“It’s a good thing, Reg,” James says, “That means you two were like, made for one another!”

“I don’t know,” Regulus looks back up, “But what if it’s wrong?”

“There’s no way it’s wrong, Reg,” Sirius argues, “That’s not how fate works.”

“How would you know that?”

“Because it’s fate idiot,” He replies, “Not to mention that I know she-”

“Love,” Remus stops him, “Think before you say that.”

“Ok, I won’t say that,” Sirius concedes, “But my point still stands, just trust me Reg, it’s not wrong.”

“You have no idea,” Regulus crosses his arms.

“I have a pretty good idea.”

“It’s guesswork,” Regulus argues back, “We just started talking again.”

“That’s your fault,” Sirius points out.

Regulus sighs, “You think I don’t  _ know _ that?”

“Don’t bring it up then.”

“What? That makes no sense.”

“It makes total sense,” Sirius shoots back, “Don’t bring it up if you don’t want to talk about it. You’re doing this to yourself, Reg.”

Regulus huffs and gets up, “I’m not arguing with you.”

“Then don’t ask for help.”

“I didn’t,” Regulus shakes his head, “You gave me it anyway.”

“You came in here, we didn’t invite you.”

Regulus stares at him a moment before shaking his head again and walking out of the room, ignoring James calling at him. He wasn’t looking for someone to point out all the things he’s done wrong, he really  _ doesn’t  _ need that right now. Of course, Sirius doesn’t seem to care in the slightest. 

Footsteps sound down the stairs behind him, Regulus looking back to see James walking up next to him, “Reg, I have a question.”

“Hm?” Regulus prompts.

“Are you going to Hogsmeade with anyone tomorrow?” James questions.

Regulus shakes his head, “Cynthia already planned to go with her friends.”

“Well, Remus and Sirius are going on a date because Valentine’s Day is Monday, so I was wondering if you wanted to go with me and Peter?” James suggests, “Peter is cool, you won’t mind him.”

“Valentine’s Day is Monday?” Regulus asks in slight disbelief, James nodding. “Shoot, yeah, I’ll go with you.”

“Do you need something for Valentine’s day? We can help!” He proposes, “For Cynthia?”

Regulus nods, “I know what she likes, it’ll be fine.”

“Well, we’ll just be there for moral support then,” James smiles, the two of them stopped just before the portrait door to leave, “Well, I’m going to let you go back, I’ll see you tomorrow then?”

“I’ll see you tomorrow,” Regulus agrees, watching as James turns back to head back upstairs. He turns back just before he goes out of view.

He waves, “Bye Reg!”

Regulus laughs, “Bye, James.”


	84. Every Ridge

Cynthia stares at the photo in her hand, running a soft hand through Turtle laying on her chest. The photo is old and worn, dispute not being from that long ago. It’s her and her siblings, she’s standing in the middle, beaming from ear to ear, dressed for her first year at Hogwarts. Behind her on either side are Cain and Cassandra, their smiles much more subdued but still feeding off of her unending excitement. She has her hands on a small boy’s shoulders, Caden, who is flashing a toothy grin at the camera, his head shaved clean. Even in the faded image, she can see the unhealed scar across the side of his head. 

She runs a finger across the photograph, hoping, in some vain effort, to make it a little clearer. Of course, the graininess stays, the color still worn and dripping in places she’s sure she’s gotten tears on. She sighs, looking down at Turtle, half-asleep on top of her. 

“Turtle,” She starts, “Do you think Caden would have liked Reggie?”

The cat simply looks up at her, permission enough for Cynthia to keep talking.

“He’s so good with Dora, so patient and calm, I think Caden would have really loved him. He would have been fascinated with the way Reggie plays piano, he loved music like that,” She rambles, “I wish I could have used a memory with him in. I mean, I love Reggie, I love him a lot, but I wanted my Patronus to come from Reggie meeting Caden, not him meeting you.”

Turtle leans into the hand scratching her on the side of the head.

“I mean, not to say that isn’t an amazing memory, but just,” She hesitates, “It wasn’t the kind of amazing I wanted, you know?”

Turtle just stares at her as her hand falls down beside her.

“You don’t know what I’m saying, I’m talking to my cat,” Cynthia sighs again, “But I feel like your insight is better than most people’s, right, my girl?”

Turtle lays her head back down on Cynthia’s chest, Cynthia giving her a sad smile.

“I think sometimes you miss him too,” She comments, scratching the cat on the head. She looks over when someone knocks on the door, calling, “Who’s there?”

“Reg,” A voice calls back, Cynthia urging Turtle off her chest and sitting up.

“It’s open,” She says, the door opening and Regulus peeking his head around the corner, “Hey Reggie.”

“Hi,” He greets, “Are you busy?”

“No, you’re fine,” She assures him, Regulus walking inside and shutting the door. “And even if I was you know you’re welcome in here.”

He grabs a seat on her bed, “I just wanted to make sure, you looked busy.”

“No, I’m just talking to Turtle,” She softly laughs, “She’s a good listener.”

“Turtle is the best listener,” He gushes, scratching Turtle under her chin, looking over at the photo sitting next to her, “Is that what I think it is?”

“Mhm,” She turns it around so he can see it, “I regret never framing it, it’s just so faded now.”

He takes it and studies it a moment before handing it back, not saying anything. Cynthia grabs the frame off of her nightstand and puts the photo back in it, returning it to where it was before. 

She looks back at Regulus, “Did you come in here for anything? I thought you were going to see James.”

“Oh, yeah,” He kicks his shoes off so he can pull his legs all the way up onto the bed, “Well, I did, but Sirius and I got into an argument because of course we did. I am going to Hogsmeade with James now, though, him and their other friend Peter. Apparently, Sirius and his boyfriend are going together.”

“That’s good! I feel bad not going with you, but I promised Pam and Kari and all of them that I would go with them this weekend last week, and I didn’t want to change it,” She admits, “But I’m glad you have someone to go with, we’ll go next week.”

“We will not be going next week,” Regulus laughs, “Think about it.”

Cynthia thinks about what’s happening next week a moment before realizing, “Oh, there’s a Quidditch game next week, right, right. We’re against Ravenclaw, right?”

“Mhm,” Regulus nods.

“How are you feeling about it?” Cynthia asks, “Ravenclaw is easy, right?”

“I’m a little nervous, I haven’t played since I broke my wrist almost two weeks ago,” Regulus replies, “But, don’t tell Emma, I played with James a little yesterday and I wasn’t too rusty, so I’m hoping I’ll be fine.”

“I think you’ll be good, I believe in you,” She smiles, “What practices do you have next week?”

“Monday, Wednesday, and Thursday.”

“Thursday?” Cynthia questions, “That’s weird.”

“Yeah, Ravenclaw has the pitch on Friday, but they only have two practices next week,” Regulus responds, “Emma told me she traded our Friday spot for their Monday and Thursday ones because I haven’t played.”

“It makes sense,” Cynthia nods, looking back to the photo on her nightstand. It’s one of those days where Caden starting to become all she thinks about.

“Thinking about him?” He asks, Cynthia looking back and nodding, “Talk me through it, I’m listening.”

“I always envisioned my Patronus memory being something with him in it. I feel, I don’t know, guilty that it wasn’t. Nothing I remember is clear enough anymore,” She sighs, looking glancing at the photo again, “I wish it wouldn’t have been you meeting Turtle, it should have been you meeting Caden. God, he would have loved you.”

Regulus raises an eyebrow.

“The way I saw you interact with Dora? Absolutely he would have,” She pauses a moment, the small smile on her face fading as she unearths a memory she didn’t really want to.

“What did you think of?” Regulus prompts, Cynthia fiddling with the ends of her hair.

“When he got really sick again, in July, and he was holed up in that hospital room, he always wanted to hear about all my friends. His first request was always you, I think I told him about how we messed around in Flying Class a million times,” She wipes at her eyes, tears beginning to well up in them, “I wish I didn’t lie to him when I said he would meet you one day.”

Regulus stays silent a moment, letting her take a minute to regain her composure.

“I’m sorry,” She shakes her head, “It’s been such a long time and I still get worked up over it.”

“It hasn’t been that long,” Regulus counters, “It’ll be 4 years this summer, right?”

She nods. 

“You don’t have to be over it yet, that’s ok, everyone processes things differently,” He reasons, “I mean, I don’t want to pretend I know what it feels like, but I do promise I’m always here to listen.”

“Thank you, Reggie,” She crosses her arms tightly over her chest, “I don’t know, most days I’m fine, it doesn’t bother me. But every so often it creeps back in, I think we’ve talked about this before.”

“Mhm, we have, because I know that feeling,” Regulus agrees, “It’s alright to have bad days, it’s normal.”

“I don’t think you believe that yourself.”

“I’m working on it,” He admits, “But it doesn’t mean it isn’t true, it’s fine if it gets to you sometimes.”

Cynthia moves forward for a hug, Regulus immediately catching onto what she wants and pulling her in, wrapping his arms tightly around her. She doesn’t cry, she doesn’t want to. Instead, she just indulges in his comfort, something she’s really, really missed. He’ll never believe her, but he really does give good hugs. Neither of them says anything, Cynthia not planning on breaking the moment any time soon, and she knows he won’t either. They don’t need to talk at all. 

Just his presence is enough.

***

Hogsmeade with James and Peter was pretty much as tiring as Regulus thought it would be. He got everything for Cynthia though, and it was pretty enjoyable, so he’ll take it. It did take him an entire day to recharge after that because  _ God _ is James a lot. Not in a bad way, but Regulus cannot sustain that for as long as he did. 

Regulus comes out of his dorm’s bathroom dressed for Quidditch, noticing a red gift bag placed on his bed, smiling before walking over to sift through it. He already gave Cynthia her Valentine’s Day gift, filled with every sweet he knows she likes. She got the same thing from him, at least they’re consistent. 

He would love to look through the whole thing, but he can’t really be late to Quidditch today, considering it’s the first time he’s gone since he broke his wrist. Emma was on a strict veto of him going to practice all of last week, even though he swore he was fine. She said she didn’t want to risk it, so he just listened. He puts the bag in his trunk and seals it closed before heading down to practice.

He walks onto the pitch to see Emma and a couple of other kids already there, standing around chatting. Emma turns around and smiles at him as he walks up.

“Reg! Good to have you back,” She greets, “Are you ready? I’m putting you to work today, you missed two whole weeks.”

“You made me miss one of those weeks,” He corrects her.

“Ok, regardless you’re getting put to work, you need to get back into it,” She holds up a finger, “Although I  _ know _ you practiced with James on Thursday when I said  _ not  _ to push it.”

Regulus laughs, “Am I ok?”

“Whatever whatever,” She looks off behind him, Regulus looking back to see the remaining three kids walking onto the field, “Oh, by the way, Reg, if Yaxley gives you shit let me know. I really got on him about what happened, I am still very upset about it.”

“It’s fine, and I will,” He assures her, the two of them breaking away as Emma walks back to stand in front of the group of them. 

“Alright, we have 2 practices after today. 2, that’s it,” Emma starts, “We did well against Gryffindor, great, Ravenclaw is a totally different opponent. They’re a really good defense, so you two are going to meet your matches, guys.” She points at Jack and Samael, “You two need to be sharp and work on your guards.”

“I’m great at guarding, what do you mean?” Jack laughs, Emma just rolling her eyes.

“Actually, you’re perfect, great job Jack,” She sarcastically congratulates, “But regardless, I want to see you all at 100% all of this week. And I  _ swear _ if you get hurt I will be so angry, please stay uninjured.”

“A little hard for some of us,” Yaxley quietly comments, underestimated both Emma’s hearing and unbridled rage.

“Oh, unfortunately, I didn’t ask for your input,” She points behind her, “Run a lap, run, go.”

“What?” He shakes his head in confusion. 

“You heard me, go,” She shoots back, “I mean it, right now.”

He runs off, starting his way around the pitch. Emma watches until he’s a decent way away before looking back to the rest of the group. 

“Anyone else having anything to add?” She asks, the sweetness in her voice completely phony, “Good, let’s continue. I want to do a little bit more spot training today, working within your position. Chasers, you and I have been doing good work, so I think we’ll stick with that. Jack, you’ve been working with Yaxley on stuff, haven’t you?”

“Mhm,” Jack nods, “We’ve been doing some guarding mostly, with, well nothing, but guarding nonetheless. Do you want us to keep working on that?”

“For today at least, yeah,” She nods, “Reg, I trust you have your own things you can work on, if you need a partner you’re always welcome to just come grab me.”

Regulus nods. 

“Perfect, alright, go stretch, get started on you’re own,” She waves them off, Regulus heading off a little further away from the group to start his stretching. 

He’s got a  _ lot _ of work to do today.

***

The crowd surrounding the Quidditch pitch starts to become background noise, Regulus focusing in on finding the Snitch. He’s shaken off all of the rust he gained from not playing for two weeks, and he was sharp as ever yesterday. This should be easy, the Ravenclaw seeker is nowhere near as fast as he is. As long as he finds it first, he should be able to score them the game, quick and easy.

If only he could find the damn thing. 

He’s avoiding staying in one spot, knowing the Ravenclaw beaters are not the cleanest players he’s been up against. And he has absolutely no faith that if a bludger is coming his direction that Yaxley is going to even try and stop it. 

It’s a flash of light that catches his attention, Regulus looking over to see the golden ball go flying by. He speeds after it, avoiding the fight amongst the Chasers going on over the Quaffle. The Ravenclaw Seeker catches on immediately, cutting across to catch up to Regulus. The only issue is the Ravenclaw Seeker is way taller than he is, and his reach beats Regulus’ by a lot. 

Regulus is faster though, and he’s the first to react when the Snitch dives down to near level with the ground, chasing after it and nearly catching up to it if it wasn’t for the bump he got from the other Seeker. Regulus avoids him the next time he tries to slam into him, reaching out for the Snitch a second time. It goes up, Regulus going right with it. He doesn’t question when the other Seeker doesn’t go with him. He’s too into it. 

He’s almost within reach of it. He’s so close, it’s grazing the tips of his fingers. He can feel each ridge on the small golden ball, and he’s so focused on it that he doesn’t hear the commotion next to him. Or the bludger flying towards him.

Until everything goes black. 


	85. Distraction

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> sorry for the cliffhanger last time it needed to happen  
> here's your reparation payment

Regulus wakes up to a painful pounding of his head, attempting to open his eyes but rather being blinded by the all too bright room. He hears voices, but his ears are ringing too loud to make out any of them. He has no idea what happened, all he knows is he isn’t out on the Quidditch pitch anymore.

He forces himself to crack his eyes open enough to see what’s going on, recognizing the telltale white and cleanness of the Hospital Wing, although all of it is blurrier than it normally is. He looks to his right, seeing who he’s almost positive is Cynthia sitting in a chair next to him, and who he only guesses is Emma standing beside her from all the green she’s dressed in. He sees Cynthia’s mouth move, but it doesn’t actually register as any words.

He shakes his head, looking at her confused. He looks to his left when he hears someone else, Madam Pomfrey, but he still can’t make any of it out. He  _ hates _ this, even in the foggy mindset he’s in the fact that he can’t hear anyone over the muffled ringing it is causing him to start to panic.

Madam Pomfrey holds something out to him, which he hesitantly takes, watching her say something and tap her mouth. He has to drink it, easy enough. He downs what’s in the cup, which admittedly tastes disgusting, but he almost immediately feels at least his senses clearing up. His head still feels like someone is hammering on his skull, though.

“-And that shouldn’t take more than a minute to work, thank goodness for fast-acting ingredients,” Madam Pomfrey comments, turning back to look at him, “Is that better, Regulus?”

He nods, big mistake because the pain in his head increases tenfold. He instinctively puts his hand up to his head in response. 

“Is your head still hurting?” She asks, “Here, hold on, I think I have something for that that won’t kill you.”

“Please don’t kill him,” Emma laughs, “I think Sirius would have my head twice.”

“I’ll try to keep you alive too, then,” Madam Pomfrey jokes back, fiddling through a couple of her cabinets. She sighs, turning back around with a needle in one hand and a bottle in the other, “This is the only thing that won’t have a horrible effect, any drinkable liquid I have will have you comatose.”

He defiantly shakes his head, once again forgetting that his brain is still shaking around in his skull. 

“Are you sure?” She asks, “It will help, I promise, it’s not that big and it’ll only be a second.”

He shakes his head again. He is  _ not _ electing to put that needle  _ anywhere  _ near him, he’ll take the pain over that any day.

She nods, setting them both back where they were before. “Just call me if you need anything, I have a couple more students to patch up, but if you need something you're more important,” She smiles, “And I know you’re probably tired, but try and stay awake for a little while, I want to see how bad that concussion is when you’re a little more awake, alright?”

“Mhm,” He affirms, his voice slightly slurred. 

“Perfect, I’ll be just down here if you need me,” She says before taking the cart against the wall and pushing it down to someone on the other side of the room.

Regulus looks at Emma, opening his mouth to ask what happened but losing the words in his fuzzy headspace. Cynthia, who is much more tuned in to him, answers anyway.

“You got hit by a bludger,” Cynthia tells him, “It knocked you out, it didn’t look like your fault.”

“It wasn’t,” Emma affirms, “It was disgusting on Ravenclaw’s part, and Yaxley should have blocked it. I’m going to talk to Slughorn tomorrow because I’m really done with his shit.”

“Wasn’t he also the reason Reg broke his wrist?” Cynthia looks up at Emma.

“Yeah, I think he wants Seeker, but he’s not going to be getting  _ anything _ when I’m done with him,” She groans, “I’m sorry, I’m furious about this. I can’t  _ believe  _ that happened.”

“’s fine,” Regulus slurs out, surprised he was even able to reply.

“It’s really not fine,” Emma shakes her head, “But it’s alright, I got it, you don’t even have to think about it. Just focus on not dying, please, I’m scared of your brother.”

Regulus gives her a small, weak laugh, “You should be.”

“How are you feeling?” Cynthia asks.

Regulus shrugs, although he knows that he feels like absolute garbage. He can’t really think straight and his head is pulsing with pain.

“Is that an ‘eh’ or a ‘too much’?” Cynthia prompts.

“Too much,” Regulus answers, “Not good.”

Cynthia looks at him sympathetically, “Is it just your head?”

He looks over at her, slightly confused for what else would be the problem, “Mhm?”

“You messed up your shoulder a little falling, but Madam Pomfrey patched it up,” Cynthia answers, “I don’t know if it’s good or bad that you couldn’t feel that.”

He gives her a small nod, silence falling between the three of them for a moment.

“I’m going to go let James and Sirius know you’re alright, they were asking but Madam Pomfrey didn’t want a crowd around your bed,” Emma says, “I’ll be back in a little while to make sure you’re still alive or whatever, but feel better Reg.”

“Thank you,” He quietly replies, watching her walk off and disappear behind the curtain barrier next to his bed. He looks over to Cynthia, his hazy brain seemingly forgetting how he got here.

“What happened?” He asks, Cynthia looking at him confused.

“I just told you, Reggie, you got hit by a bludger,” She hesitantly answers.

“Oh,” He mutters, closing his eyes for a moment and taking a deep breath, suppressing a groan. His head hurts a  _ lot _ , so much so he’s forgetting things that just happened. 

“How bad does your head hurt?”

“Bad.”

“Put it on a scale, 1-10,” She tells him, “1 is a paper cut or something and 10 is- Well, you know what 10 is.”

He slowly shakes his head, unable to figure out what she means. “What’s 10?”

She softly sighs, whispering to him, “Crucio.”

“Oh,” He realizes, trying to figure out why he didn’t think of that before, “Sorry, that was obvious.”

“You’re fine, you have a right to be a little hazy,” She laughs, “You got hit hard. Now, 1-10.”

“8?” He guesses, “Around 8.”

“Shit,” She breathes, “Why don’t you take the painkiller Madam Pomfrey offered?”

He looks at her confused, he doesn’t remember anything like that. 

“She offered something for your head, but it’s an injection-“

“No,” He denies, “I remember that, no.”

“Reggie.”

“Mm-mm,” He shakes his head, forgetting again that’s a bad idea. “Ah,” He puts a hand on his head again, gritting his teeth a moment before the effect of that subsides. 

“Come on,” She pleads, “Please, it’ll be a second.”

“It’ll give me a panic attack,” He weakly argues, almost no fight in his voice despite how much he really does not want to do that. 

“You’ll be fine, you’ll talk to me and you won’t even feel it.”

“No.”

She sighs, “If you want to be in pain, alright.”

“I don’t want to,” He shoots back, admittedly on a slight delay. God, it’s near impossible to think straight. 

Her expression saddens, “Sorry, that was uncalled for, I know you don’t want to.”

He stares at her a moment, sure that it’s all the potions in him but noting that she looks particularly pretty today. Even after being outside for the game, her hair is done really nicely. 

“Is there a reason you’re staring?” She asks, smiling. He immediately feels himself blush, looking down into his lap. “It’s alright,” She laughs, “Don’t look so embarrassed. Unless you were thinking of something weird.”

“Thia,” He groans, coughing at the unexpected dryness of his throat. It, in turn, makes his head pound. “Ow,” He idly murmurs. 

“Here, wait,” Cynthia gets up and goes to the foot of his bed, grabbing his water bottle out of the bag and sitting back down, handing it to him. He gladly takes it, drinking enough to ease his throat. One problem at a time, he keeps reminding himself, attempting to put the water on the table next to him but twisting his shoulder weird. 

“Shit,” He curses, Cynthia taking back the bottle from him, who puts a hand on his shoulder. 

“Yeah, you hit it pretty hard,” She comments, “That’s why I was surprised you couldn’t feel it before.”

“I feel it now,” He says through gritted teeth, looking up as Madam Pomfrey walks back into view. 

“Something happen with your shoulder?” She asks, concerned, walking over to him, “What happened?” 

“Nothing,” He drops his hand despite the now constant ache in his shoulder. 

“Are you sure?”

“Mhm,” He affirms. 

“Alright, well, would you mind if I asked you a couple of questions? I want to get a gauge on how you’re doing,” She asks, grabbing the clipboard from the front of his bed and walking over to pull up a chair next to him. “What was the last thing you remember? As specific as you can go.”

He pauses, trying to remember the sequence of events today. He remembers getting up, getting dressed, stretching, going out on the pitch, spotting the Snitch and going for it, and he vaguely remembers getting bumped by their seeker, but nothing after that.

“Getting bumped, chasing after the Snitch,” He recalls, trying to see if he remembers anything else. It cuts off there, though, as if it was then he blacked out.

“Ok, alright,” She looks up at Cynthia, “Has he asked the same question more than once?”

She nods, “He asked me what happened twice and he forgot you offering the painkiller.”

Madam Pomfrey sighs, “I’ll chalk it up to the fact that you just woke up. I’m going to skip anything that requires you to get up for now, are you good at math, Regulus?”

“Mhm,” He gives her a small nod. 

“What’s 5 times 6?” She asks, Regulus looking at her slightly confused. That’s a basic math question, why is she asking him a basic math question?

He opens his mouth to respond before he realizes that he doesn’t know the answer. He puzzles for a moment, racking his brain for what this very simple answer is. It takes him about a minute before he hesitantly answers, “36?”

“What about 7 times 6?”

He, once again, thinks for an extremely easy answer for about a minute before guessing, “42?”

“Ok, I really don’t like that, alright,” She gets up, sifting through her cabinet again, “Let’s try something a little stronger. How about-” She stops fiddling with something in her hand before looking over her shoulder, “Regulus, how vehemently opposed are you to needles?”

“No needles,” He insists. That’s the  _ last  _ thing he needs right now.

“Unfortunately, the only thing stronger only comes in a needle,” She turns back around, syringe in her hand.

He shakes his head, his eyes widening slightly at the thought. 

She gives him a sympathetic, sad smile, “I don’t have a choice, I’m sorry. I wish I could give you an option but I want to avoid anything lasting happening to you.”

He shakes his head again. 

“Here, hold on,” She pulls the chair up beside him, Regulus immediately panicking. It doesn’t  _ matter _ how irrational it is, he’s not strong enough to will it away. He shakes his head again. “I won’t stick you with anything until I tell you. I just want to look, alright?” 

He doesn’t take his eyes off of her, watching as she pulls up the sleeve of his Quidditch sweater, wiping a hand over the top of his arm. It’s cold, and Regulus immediately tenses up.

“Regulus, can you keep your head turned towards Cynthia for me?” She asks, “Again, I won’t do anything, just trust me.”

He forces himself to tear his eyes away from her, turning his head so he’s just looking at Cynthia, who gives him a cheesy smile. He gives her the smallest smile, every muscle in his arm still pulled tight.

“Tense up this arm,” She requests, tapping on his left arm, Regulus not having to do much to listen, “Relax it.” He relaxes his arm. “How long have you been playing Quidditch? Second Year?”

“Mhm.” 

“Is it your only extracurricular?” She questions.

“No,” He answers, “I play piano.”

“Oh, that’s nice, I always tried to pick up music but I was never any good,” She comments, “How long have you been playing?”

“12 years.”

“Wow, and how old are you? 15?” 

“Mhm,” He agrees.

“What kind of pieces do you play? Any specific composer?” 

“I liked Chopin,” He replies, his interest piquing with this conversation, “I played Beethoven and Mozart a lot too, but I like Romantic era pieces better.”

“Who are other Romantic era composers? I really only know classical from the two music classes I’ve ever taken.”

“Brahms, Tchaikovsky, Rachmaninoff,” He pauses, “Well, Rach wrote in the style and not really the era, and his pieces are not my favorite to play.”

“Why’s that?” She prompts.

“My hands don’t have enough reach to play some of the things he writes,” Regulus explains, “They’re nice to listen to, though.”

“There,” Madam Pomfrey says, pulling his sleeve down, “You’re done.”

Regulus’ head shoots over to her, looking at her confused. She just laughs. 

“Your head should be feeling better in a few minutes,” She tells him, Regulus realizing she just stuck him with both of those needles. “See? Didn’t even feel it. And I got to learn a little about piano, I think it’s a win-win.”

He watches as she throws away everything, still processing the fact that he didn’t even notice that. He’s so used to going with his mother, who had healers jab him with whatever they needed as soon as possible. It’s weird that she knew  _ exactly _ how to distract him.

“I’m good, aren’t I?” She jokes, smiling at him, “Is there anything else you need?”

He shakes his head, “Thank you.”

“Of course,” She smiles, “I’m going to grab something for you to eat in a little while, but if you need me I’ll probably be in my office down there for now, just send Cynthia. You’re also free to get some sleep if you’d like, that medicine might make you a little sleepy.”

He nods, Madam Pomfrey walking off, Regulus listening for the click of her office door before looking over at Cynthia. 

“You have bad luck, Reggie,” Cynthia sighs, “Broken wrist  _ and _ a concussion within a month.”

“Mhm,” He agrees, letting silence fall between them. She leans forward so she’s resting her elbows on the bed, resting her chin on her hands.

“Are you feeling less fuzzy? You sound better.”

He shrugs, “A little, just tired.”

“Sleep then, I’m not going anywhere,” She answers, “

“I’m fine,” He quietly counters, tiredness already pulling at his eyes.

“Mm-mm, get some sleep,” She shakes her head, sitting up in her chair.

He wants to protest, but he honestly just wants to go back to sleep and avoid thinking about everything that got him here. He hears her start humming something to herself, something he vaguely recognizes but doesn’t have the energy to place. He decides it’s not worth forcing himself awake, his eyes drifting closed as all he hears is the subtle drips and clicks of the room on top of Cynthia’s soft song.

It doesn’t take long before he drifts off to sleep.


	86. The Door Was Open?

Regulus flutters awake hearing an awfully familiar voice calling what he thinks is his name. 

“Reg!” James excitedly yells, walking up into Regulus’ field of view, behind him Sirius. 

“Can you be any louder?” Sirius scolds him, looking over at Regulus as he walks up, “He was asleep, idiot!”

“I’m sorry!” James apologizes, putting a hand up to his mouth.

Sirius just laughs and drags James over to the left of Regulus’ bed. Sirius grabs a seat in the chair that Madam Pomfrey was sitting in before, James leaning on the back of the chair behind him. 

“Good to see you’re alive, Reg,” Sirius comments, knocking him lightly in the exact wrong spot on his left arm. 

“Sirius!” Regulus hisses, grabbing his arm.

“Oh, shit-” Sirius curses, “What did I do?”

“Reggie had probably about 4 shots in that arm within an hour,” Cynthia tells him.

“You let her bring a  _ needle _ near you? Are you sure you’re alright?” Sirius asks in disbelief. 

“Shut up,” Regulus groans, “I was out for two of them.”

“And the other two?”

“I didn’t know,” He answers, “She didn’t tell me until she had already given me them. It was cheating.”

“Goddamn, that woman deserves a medal,” Sirius laughs, looking up at James, “Have I ever told you what it’s like trying to get Reg to get any kind of vaccine? Impossible, absolutely impossible.”

“Well, we know Madam Pomfrey is a miracle worker,” James laughs, “We’re alive, right?”

“And so is Reg,” Sirius looks back to him, “Are you feeling alright?”

Regulus nods.

“You don’t feel numb? Dizzy? Your ears aren’t ringing or anything?”

“No, Sirius, I’m fine,” Regulus insists, “We’re not home, it’s fine.”

“You’re sure?” Sirius presses, “You did the multiplication table thing? Remembering things fine?”

“Yes, Madam Pomfrey checked everything,” Regulus assures him.

“That’s a nasty bruise,” James points, Regulus bringing his hand up to his face.

“What?” He asks, unaware he had any bruising on his face. He looks over at Cynthia, confused for why she didn’t say anything.

“Yeah, I decided against mentioning it, I thought I’d let you see it later.”

“How big is it?” He questions, Sirius drawing a finger across his own face from right above his left temple to curving under his left eye.

“You don’t really have a black eye, though,” Sirius sits back in his chair, “It’s just under it.”

Regulus sighs, he  _ just  _ got rid of the brace that screamed attention. He really has bad luck. 

“It’s fine, James is dramatic,” Sirius says, “It isn’t as bad as you probably think it is.”

Regulus doesn’t believe him but doesn’t say anything. 

“How long will you be in here?” Sirius asks, “Did she tell you?”

“Just overnight,” Regulus responds, “She just wants to make sure I don’t get worse.”

James goes to say something but stops when the door to the Hospital Wing creaks open, all of them looking over towards it. Regulus sees James’ and Sirius’ faces light up, so he pretty safely assumes he knows who it is. 

“Remus!” James cheers, “Hi!” 

“I had a feeling this is where you two went,” Remus laughs, looking over at Regulus and waving, “Hello Regulus.”

Regulus waves back.

“Should you both be in here?” Remus asks, “Did she say it was ok?”

“Nope!” James smiles, “But I think Sirius would have started tearing his hair out if we didn’t show up.”

“Are you feeling better now, love?” Remus asks.

“Very,” Sirius answers, “I think I have a little bit of a right to be worried.”

“Why do I hear so many voices from over here?” Madam Pomfrey asks, Regulus hearing her office door open. James pulls Remus closer to him in some worthless hope of hiding behind the curtain. She peaks around the curtain barrier to the right of him, sighing, “How did you three get in?”

“The door was open?” James tries to lie, not being convincing in the slightest. 

Madam Pomfrey sighs, “What did I tell you all?  _ After dinner _ . It is,” She looks over at the clock, “4 pm, that is  _ not _ after dinner.”

“No, but you’ll let us stay because you love us,” Sirius replies, “And we’re not doing anything bad, we’re just making sure he’s ok!”

“You shouldn’t  _ be _ here,” Madam Pomfrey insists, “Didn’t Emma come talk to you?”

“I don’t trust her.”

“Goodness, what am I going to do with you all?” She crosses her arms, “Come back later.”

“But Cynthia can be here,” James points, “So can we, Sirius is family and I’m his plus one!”

“Regulus,” She looks at him, “What do you want? Do you want them gone?”

Regulus shrugs, “It’s fine.”

“Alright, but I’m leaving my office door open, so don’t do anything stupid,” She warns them, “Cynthia is in charge, and I’m still listening.”

“We won’t!” James waves as she walks away before looking back to Regulus, “So how are you doing, Reg?”

Regulus just stares at him because he shouldn’t need to answer that.

“Guess, dumbass,” Sirius looks up at him.

James laughs, “I’m sorry! I’m trying to make conversation, casual chatting.”

“Well at least talk about something good,” Sirius counters. 

“Ok, ok,” James thinks for a minute, “Let’s talk about… How Mum is going to flip out when she hears you’re hurt again?”

“I know,” Regulus replies, “She’s going to keep me in a bubble.”

“Speaking of, did I tell you what she wrote me about the other day?” James excitedly asks.

Regulus shakes his head.

“So, she was telling me what family is planning to come over break…”

***

Regulus has been out of the Hospital Wing for almost a week, which has been just as bad as he thought it would be. He’s been keeping his head down for a week, not to mention he can barely focus on what he’s doing, nor see it. At least he has an excuse. 

And now Cynthia is dragging him to another one of those hangouts with Gryffindor kids a year older than him.

They walk into the Common Room, already filled with Sirius, James, Remus, Peter, Marlene, Dorcas, Lily, and Mary. All of which have cups in their hands. 

“The kids are here!” Marlene points, “Good to see you two.”

“We’re a year younger,” Cynthia argues, taking a seat on the floor between where Sirius, Remus, and James are sitting on the couch and Lily sitting on the sofa chair. Regulus sits next to her.

“Two years younger than Sirius and Mary,” Marlene points out, “You’re practically babies.”

“If either of you wants any there’s probably two cups in here,” Mary says, picking up the stack of cups, “Yeah, there’s two.” She puts them down on the table a little closer to the two of them.

“I’m good,” Cynthia shakes her head, looking over at Regulus.

“I can’t have any,” He reminds her.

“Right, right,” Cynthia nods, “Ok, don’t let Reggie have any.”

“Noted,” Mary nods, looking at him a moment, “That’s a nasty bruise, ow.”

He puts a hand on the bruise on the left side of his face, “It’s fine.”

“It looks better than it did on Monday,” Cynthia says, “It was  _ bright _ purple, it looked like you had eyeshadow on.” 

“Now it just looks like your face is dirty,” Sirius looks over at him.

Regulus just rolls his eyes, fiddling with his sleeve and realizing he doesn’t have anything to do with his hands without a cup. He grabs a cup off the table, having no intention of filling it with anything but water, but Sirius isn’t that smart.

“Reg.”

“I’m putting water in it,” He annoyedly corrects him, “Calm down.”

Sirius just stays silent, which is an answer enough for Regulus to know Sirius realized he was being an idiot. Regulus takes out his wand and casting  _ Aguamenti _ into the cup, filling it about halfway with water before putting his wand away. Good, now he has something to do if he wants out of a situation. 

“So, what’re we doing?” James asks, “We can’t just sit here.”

“I mean, we could, but  _ you _ can’t,” Sirius counters, “And why can’t we just talk, why do we have to do something?”

“Well then someone give something for us to talk about,” James replies, looking around at the group, “Anyone?”

“Let’s talk about James’ middle name I got the pleasure of reading on a letter yesterday,” Sirius laughs.

“Sirius!” James whines.

“Wait, what is it?” Marlene asks, “I need to know, what is it?”

“Sirius if you say it I swear,” James threatens, but Sirius doesn’t listen.

“Fleamont-”

“Sirius!” James yells, Lily breaking out laughing. 

“James Fleamont Potter, it really drains on your name,” Mary comments, “And it’s killing Lily right now.”

“Please,” Lily says through laughter, “That’s the best thing I’ve ever heard.”

“It’s my  _ dad’s _ name, don’t make fun of him!” James crosses his arms.

“Your dad is great, the name fits him,” Sirius argues, “ _ You _ are a different story.”

“Ok, at least I'm not named after a star,” James jeers back, “Not you Reg, you’re wonderful.”

“Why is Reg exempt, he’s still a star?”

“He’s a  _ cool _ star,” James argues, “And at least his initials aren’t  _ sob _ .”

“ _ Rab  _ is better?”

“R-A-B sounds cooler than S-O-B.”

“Ok J-F-P.”

“Can you two  _ please _ stop arguing over  _ names _ ?” Remus, who is, unfortunately, sitting between them, pleads, “Your names are both wonderful.”

“Aww, we love you too,” James coos, Sirius shooting him an aggressive glare, “I love you as a friend.”

“Good,” Sirius smiles, turning Remus’ head and giving him a kiss, lingering close to him a moment and murmuring, “Only I get Moony’s heart.”

“Of course,” Remus replies, Sirius pulling him down to lay on top of him. 

“Gross,” James deadpans, looking down when Peter calls his attention. The two fall into a conversation, the room kind of splitting off into their own little sections. Cynthia turns to him.

“Reggie,” She says, “Are you going to Hogsmeade tomorrow? Did you ask?”

He shakes his head, “She said no, I shouldn’t. Sorry.”

“That’s fine! We’ll stay back,” Cynthia assures him, “You can stay in my dorm, Turtle would love to have you.”

“And I would love to see her,” He replies.

“Did you respond to Andromeda yet?” Cynthia asks, “You said you were going to after school but you never did.”

“Shoot, no I didn’t,” He sighs, “I also haven’t responded to Mrs. Potter, I can’t remember anything.”

“You were just knocked unconscious a week ago, not even,” Cynthia reminds him, “You get a little bit of a break.”

“Still annoying.”

“I’ll remind you tomorrow,” She tells him, “Did you read the Defense textbook today?”

“I tried,” Regulus answers, “My vision has been horrible this week.”

She stares at him a moment, “Please tell me you told Madam Pomfrey that.”

He shakes his head, “I didn’t think it was important.”

“Wasn’t important? Reggie, you can’t  _ see _ .”

“I can see,” He counters, “Just not very well.”

“That’s not  _ good. _ ”

“It’s been like that since I was 7, it’s fine.”

Cynthia sighs, “I’m also taking you to tell her  _ that _ tomorrow because a concussion shouldn’t be  _ impacting your eyesight _ a week later.”

“No, we’re not, I’m fine,” He insists, “I can still see.”

“What are you two talking about?” Lily leans over, looking down at the two of them. 

“Why so  _ nosey _ , Lily?” Cynthia pokes back.

“Well, someone has to make sure the babies aren’t doing anything they’re not supposed to.”

“We’re not babies!”

“You kind of are,” Marlene chimes in, “You’re like almost babies, I’m not scared of you though.”

“Can’t  _ believe _ you’re afraid of  _ babies _ ,” Sirius says, “That’s so stupid.”

“You’re afraid of fucking ladybugs,” Marlene shoots back, “That’s the dumbest fear I’ve ever heard. They can’t do  _ shit _ .”

“I wasn’t  _ that  _ scared of them until I was traumatized as a child!”

“Stop trying to put your fear off limits, I will not stop making fun of you for it.”

“Ok you two, time to calm down,” Remus laughs, “I’m right next to Sirius, Marlene, you’re going to make me go deaf.”

“That’s Sirius’ fault,” Marlene accuses, “Not mine.”

“Why do we consistently put the two of you in the same room?” Lily sighs, “You always end up either fighting or setting things on fire.”

Marlene laughs, “It’s our charm!”

Regulus watches James, who is looking increasingly more insecure as Marlene and Sirius continue to chat. Regulus doesn’t quite know why, but James tends to have a problem with feeling rejected. 

“James,” Regulus calls his attention over, “Is Emma using you tomorrow?”

“Oh oh, I didn’t tell you about what I talked to her about,” James walks over and grabs a seat in front of him, now happy and smiling, “So I talked to her during our Study period because we share the same one, and  _ she _ was telling me about how Slughorn wanted to talk to you about it. I told her about how you looked when I saw you, what, yesterday? And she said she’d postpone Slughorn’s questions, but I think you’re going to have to see him Monday with Emma.”

“Wonderful,” Regulus deadpans, “Slughorn gives me a headache on a normal day, that’s going to be riveting.”

“Well, you almost had to go Wednesday.”

“I’ll have to thank Emma,” Regulus notes to himself, knowing he’ll forget that by Monday.

“Emma said if she didn’t have to go through Head of House to add and take kids off of her team, she would have had a different beater on Sunday.”

“She would have a different team, Emma likes to threaten to kick people off,” Regulus replies, “But you didn’t answer my question, are you playing with them tomorrow?”

“Oh! So, actually, it’s funny you ask…”


	87. Why Not?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> oh yall aint ready for this one.
> 
> also the comments you guys leave me SO happy?? i love hearing your thoughts on the chapters and your ideas about where things are going. just know i love seeing them all!!

Regulus manages to avoid seeing Madam Pomfrey again over the weekend, convincing Cynthia that he would do it later and that he just wanted to rest. He has no intention of visiting her, though, his eyesight is just fine. Unfortunately for him, however, he has not gotten out of this meeting with Slughorn.

He walks up to the door to Slughorn’s office, knocking on the door. He hears voices inside before the door opens, Slughorn smiling at him on the other side.

“Regulus! Wonderful to see you,” He steps to the side, “Come in, come sit.”

Regulus walks into the room, taking a seat next to Emma as Slughorn takes his seat on the other side.

“Your eye is looking better, Reg,” Emma comments.

He nods, subconsciously touching the spot of the healing bruise. It’s still really annoying, but at least it doesn’t really hurt anymore.

“Alright, so,” Slughorn sighs, “Emma, tell me what you want to do again, with Regulus here.”

“I want Yaxley off the team, no suspension,” She firmly states, “He’s hurt Reg twice and I can have a replacement by Wednesday.”

“Unfortunately, Emma, you can’t make that jump,” Slughorn cautions, “He didn’t directly injure Regulus, he can’t be held accountable.”

“But it’s a pattern,” Emma argues, “The first time, I understand, I got mad at him but that’s all I can do. But this is twice,  _ two _ serious injuries as a result of carelessness in what he’s doing.”

“You know what’s in the book, it’s not provable.”

She shakes her head, pulling the Quidditch booklet out of her bag. “Patterns of misbehavior or injuries as a result of negligence, depending on the severity, can result in either suspension or removal at the discretion of the captain and the Head Of House.”

“Let me see that,” He holds his hand out, taking it from her and reading where she has a flag placed. He hesitates before looking back up, “I need to be involved, and I say no.”

“Why?”

“What if both were accidents? How do you know they weren’t?” Slughorn presses.

“Well, first of all, it happened twice,” Emma starts, “Second, he wants Seeker, he tried out against Reg in his Second Year and was pissed when he didn’t get it. He protects everyone else except for him. Come _on_ , Professor, Reg has played one week of Quidditch since the end of January. We _only_ _have_ one Seeker, and he’s been out of commission for a while.”

“It’s been that long?” Slughorn questions.

“Mhm,” Emma nods, “He broke his wrist that last Saturday in January, didn’t play for two weeks, played the week of the game, and then hasn’t played since.”

“Regulus,” Slughorn looks at him, “When did Madam Pomfrey say you’ll be cleared? Or do you not know?”

“She said at least not for another week,” Regulus responds.

“Ok, well,” Slughorn sighs, “I don’t want to kick him off.”

“I do,” Emma states.

“I know you do,” Slughorn taps his finger on the desk, “What if you have Jack train with him?”

“He despises Yaxley,” Emma counters, “That wouldn’t go well.”

“You’re really leaving me with no choice are you,” He looks back to Regulus, “What are you thinking, my boy?”

Regulus shrugs, “I mean, I don’t really trust him.”

“Here, how about this,” Slughorn says, “I’ll talk to him, see what he says to me. If I think he’s really doing all of this intentionally, I’ll suspend him from the team and we can take things from there. One thing at a time, how about that?”

“I’ll take that,” Emma nods, “That sounds good to me.”

“Perfect,” Slughorn pulls out a piece of paper and writes something down on it, “Thank you both, hopefully, this stops happening. I don’t think Regulus needs another visit to Madam Pomfrey.”

“I agree, I’m using  _ James Potter _ as a replacement,” Emma groans, “He never stops, ever. It’s insane.”

“That’s certainly James,” Slughorn laughs, getting up, “I hate to kick you two out, but I have a faculty meeting in about 5 minutes, so I have to get going.”

“That’s gross,” Emma comments, getting up, Regulus following suit. The two of them walk to the door, Emma bidding her goodbyes and Regulus waving before they both walk out, shutting the door behind themselves. 

They start back towards the Slytherin Common Room, Emma looking over at him, “So, I want your opinion on something. I don’t want you to not do  _ anything _ Quidditch for another week, and it’s only your head that’s hurt, so I want to know how you feel about continuing to like, attend practices? You can just toy with the Snitch or whatever, but- you know what I mean?”

He nods, “That’d be good.”

“I have to clear it with Madam Pomfrey though.”

“It’s probably fine.”

“Mm-mm,” She shakes her head, “I’m not doing anything without her permission, I fear her wrath and I don’t want you to die.”

“I won’t die,” He counters, “But I think it’s a good idea, I would like to play the game I signed up for.”

Emma laughs, “Right? That’s what I’m thinking. Practice is at normal time on Wednesday, you’re welcome to bring a friend too if you want. Doesn’t matter to me.”

Regulus nods, noting that he has to ask Cynthia as soon as he sees her so he doesn’t forget.

Hey, it gives him something to do.

***

“I can’t believe you got this cleared,” Cynthia laughs as she and Regulus walk to the Quidditch storage closet. It’s way out of the way, but Regulus needs the easier practice Snitch. It’s the only thing he can use.

“I’m on strict rules not to do any physical activity except sit there and grab the Snitch out of the sky,” Regulus answers, “Madam Pomfrey said if I get worse she’s not letting me do it again.”

“I’ll make sure you don’t,” She assures him. Regulus walks up to the already open closet door, going in and starting to look for the Snitch he needs, not hearing Cynthia walk in behind him until he hears the door slam. His head shoots back, looking at the now-closed storage closet door. Cynthia goes to pull it open, the door not moving an inch. She pulls again, and again, and again. Nothing.

“Shit,” She looks back at him, “This door automatically locks.”

“I don’t think it does,” Regulus shakes his head, walking over to try and open it. The doorknob just shakes, locked. “You’re kidding.”

“Is anyone coming over here?” She asks, banging on the door quite aggressively. 

“No, they got everything already,” He steps back from the door, letting her continue to bang on the door to no avail. Regulus knows no one will be over here unless they’re looking for something, it’s nowhere near where people hang out. Regulus decides to try his wand, but he knows that probably won’t work. He tries everything he knows that opens doors, but the lock is charmed, just like  _ every other  _ lock at Hogwarts.

“Let me try,” She moves him over, taking out her own wand and doing everything he just did. Of course, it doesn’t work. “Will Emma notice you’re gone?” She asks, looking over at him, “Please tell me she will.”

“I mean, maybe? I told her I would be here today, but practice is only 2 hours.”

“2 hours?! You’re fucking kidding me, I’m not staying in this room for 2 fucking hours!”

“Calm down,” Regulus sighs, “We’ll be fine, it’s fine. It’s not that long.”

“I cannot  _ believe  _ this, I was supposed to spend today outside and now I’m locked in a goddamn Quidditch storage closet-”

“Thia,” He stops her, “Calm down.”

She takes a deep breath before nodding, “Yeah, we’re fine, we’re alright.”

Regulus grabs a seat on the floor against an empty spot on the wall, Cynthia walking over to sit next to him. She leans her head on his shoulder.

“Well this sucks,” She comments, “What do we do now?”

“I mean, we don’t have many options,” He looks over at her, “Other than to sit here.”

“We can talk,” She suggests, sitting up and turning her body to him.

He mirrors her, “What are we talking about?”

“Hmm,” She ponders for a moment, “I can ask something reflective, that’s always fun.”

“That’s never fun.”

“I like it,” She counters, “What about… What is the first memory you have?”

“It’s not good,” He replies, “You don’t want to hear it, you go.”

“I’ll start, but I do want to hear it,” She corrects him, “The first thing I remember I was 5 years old, my mum called us all to the living room and told us she was pregnant. I didn’t know what it meant, but Cass and Cain were excited, so I was excited too. They told me it meant she would be having a baby and I was  _ thrilled _ , I always wanted to be an older sister.”

“That’s much nicer than what I’m about to say.”

“That’s normally how this goes,” Cynthia laughs, “I’m ready for it.”

“I think my oldest memory was from when I was 4, Andromeda took Sirius and me out to some park by my Aunt and Uncle’s house. We met this muggle boy, I think he was a year older than I was, and, being kids, we played with him,” Regulus explains, “I remember getting back home and our mother finding out, and that was the first time I ever remember being distinctly taught something purist, she was furious at us.”

“I want to kill your mother, you were 4, what the hell?!”

“We were expected to know better,” He shrugs, “That was just standard.”

“It still makes me want to deck that woman,” Cynthia shakes her head, “You ask a question.”

“I’m not asking anything, you ask the questions.”

“Fine,” She thinks for a moment, “What’s your favorite quality about yourself?”

“I do not have an answer for you on that one,” Regulus replies. 

“No, there’s got to be something,” She presses, “Here, I’ll go first. I’m really academic, and I think I have a really good ability to apply myself to school things and do well at them.”

Regulus tries to think of an answer, but he really doesn’t have one. “I honestly don’t have anything about myself that I even remotely like.”

“Nothing? That’s impossible, Reggie, it can be anything.”

He shrugs, “I don’t know, it is, ask another question.”

“No, if you don’t pick that means I get to pick for you,” She smiles, “Hmm, I mean, that’s a lot to pick from, but I think my favorite quality about you is how caring you are. I mean, I know you haven’t been dealt the best hand as far as life goes, but you don’t really act like it. You have a very caring demeanor about you, at least with me. I think that’s my favorite.”

Regulus looks down into his lap, trying to hide the fact that he’s blushing from ear to ear. Cynthia just laughs.

“Don’t act so surprised, I think I’ve told you that before,” She lightly kicks him, “Do you want me to ask another question?”

“Yeah,” He looks back up at her, “Ask something else.”

“Let’s go the other direction,” She starts, “What is your  _ least _ favorite quality about yourself?”

“Oh, I have a lot of answers for that one,” He thinks for a moment, “I think my least favorite that I can control is my tendency to ignore and avoid things. Things are normally better if I ignore them, although, not always.”

“Like your  _ goddamn _ eyesight?”

“It’s  _ fine _ , give me your answer,” He brushes her off.

“Mine would probably be my compliance, I go with what I’m told pretty much all the time,” She admits, “Sometimes it’s fine, it isn’t anything bad, but sometimes it forces me into a position I really don’t want to be in.”

“That really makes us a bad match then, doesn’t it?” He notes, “I avoid things, and you go with it.”

“Oh, I’m well aware,” She deadpans before laughing, “Although, now that you bring it up-”

“No.”

“I’m working on self-improvement, so yes, we’re talking about it,” She maintains, “Also, please, just hear me out.”

“Not right now.”

“You’ve been saying ‘not right now’ for a month,” She says, the previous calmness in the air evaporating entirely, “I just want you to listen to me, I promise it’s not bad.”

He sighs but doesn’t say anything, feeling a prickle of anxiety up his spine. He doesn’t want to talk about this, he  _ really _ doesn’t want to talk about this.

“Look, I know my reaction was stupid, I don’t know why I just- I don’t know, froze? I completely regret it because,” She takes a deep breath, Regulus readying himself for what she’s about to say, “I’ve felt like that about you for a while, and- shit,” She pauses a second, “And I had no  _ idea _ you felt the same way so I didn’t tell you because you had so much going on but I do. I do, Reggie, and I’ve been trying to tell you but I want to respect the fact that you don’t want to talk about it. But- well, I guess I’m not doing that anymore, right?”

He completely shuts down, just staring at her blankly. The information doesn't really register, he doesn’t snap back to reality until she does it for him.

“Don’t look so lost, Reggie,” She rubs his knee, “I’m sorry, that was a lot.”

“I’m sorry,” He shakes his head, trying to grasp at  _ some _ kind of language to respond with. He can’t though, so he just continues to stare at her.

“Don’t be,” She assures him, “We’re stuck here, if you need a minute, take it.”

He nods, both of them sitting in silence a moment before he says one thing, “Why?”

“Why what? Why do I feel that way?” She clarifies, and he nods. “I mean, so many things. I think you’re a better person than you give yourself credit for. I could ask you the same thing.”

“I could give you the same answer.”

“Good, we’re even,” She smiles, the conversation stalling a moment. “So, how about we try it?” She holds her hand up to him, her fingers spread.

He looks between her and it, not quite sure what the right answer is.

“We’re young, it’s not hurting anyone, there’s no downside,” She reasons, “If we both want it, why not?”

Why not? It’s a good question, and Regulus can’t reason his way out of it. He loves her, he trusts her, and she’s right, there’s no downside.

So he takes her hand.

And their fingers fit perfectly.


	88. Koala

What the  _ hell _ happened to his life?

It’s already been over a week, and Regulus has not processed a single thing that happened last Wednesday. Cynthia, however, very much has and is taking every opportunity to spend as much time with him as possible. Not that they don’t already, but it just feels more personal, even if she watches him play piano all the time and has hung out with him at least once a week since they were 12. 

Regulus walks out of his Music class, which unfortunately decided to fall on a Friday this week. He heads right back to the Slytherin dorms, luckily avoiding a rouge James in need of some company. He walks up to Cynthia’s dorm door and knocks, oddly not hearing a response. Weird, since she said she would see him after his class. He tries the door handle, finding it open. He cracks it open just enough so he can talk through it.

“Can I come in?” He asks.

“One second,” Cynthia responds, Regulus shutting the door and waiting until she comes to open it. He hears things closing and opening along with some shuffling before the door opens. Cynthia looks tired, much more tired than he remembers her being not even two hours ago.

“Hey Reggie,” She greets, almost no excitement in her voice, “Sorry, I had to put something away.”

“It’s fine,” He assures her, “Is there something wrong? You look tired.”

“Yeah- I mean, I’m fine,” She brushes him off, “I just- I got a letter from my parents that wasn’t great. I just want to forget about it for now.”

“Alright, we can do that,” He nods, stepping in the room when she moves back from the door. He takes his shoes off and drops his bag, tossing his robes and uniform jumper and putting them on her chair. He also throws off his tie, having a feeling he’ll be here for a while, and grabs a seat on the bed in front of her, waiting for her to tell him what she wants to do. She doesn’t do anything, though.

“What do you want to do?” He prompts, hoping maybe her answer is a nice game of cards or a stupid conversation. Although it’s Cynthia, he knows it’s not going to be.

She moves over and pats the bed next to her, Regulus hesitantly moving to sit next to her instead. She shakes her head, “Lay down.”

He looks at her confused but listens, although he should have known because she immediately lays down with her head on top of his chest, throwing her arm across him. She’s laying half on her side, wrapping one leg around his and snuggling herself in as close as she can go. He softly sighs, knowing it’ll take some time to get used to but it’s what’s making her most comfortable. He guesses it’s just the product of being friends for a while,  _ this _ is their ‘next step’. 

He mirrors what he’s seen Sirius do, running a hand through Cynthia’s hair. He feels her smile, which is all he needs to keep doing it. It’s a lot of contact, yes, but it’s not really bad. It makes him feel warm rather than his skin is crawling. Although, maybe that’s partly because it makes Cynthia happy.

Neither of them says anything, Regulus noticing the radio on in the corner of the room. She always seems to have that on, he’s never understood it. Regulus relaxes a little bit as he gets slightly less uncomfortable with this, the weight on him is making him tired, although he got a decent amount of sleep last night. 

He slips in and out of being half asleep for what’s probably the better of half an hour, glancing down to see Cynthia asleep on top of him. He really wants to know what she got a letter about that could have taken her down that badly, but if she didn’t want to talk about it he wasn’t going to push it. 

He’s dragged out of his tried train of thought by a knock on the door, and he can’t say anything before they just walk into the room. From around the door comes none other than Vaughn, someone Regulus has yet to be on speaking terms with.

“Are you two having  _ sex? _ ” He exclaims, probably loud enough for the entire hall to hear. 

“Why the fuck are you in here?” Cynthia loudly grumbles, “Get  _ out _ , we’re busy.”

“Busy what?” Vaughn takes another couple of steps forward, “When the hell did the two of you get together?”

“V, if you say a word about this I’m killing you,” She threatens, still not picking her head up, “Get out, leave us alone.”

“No no, why didn’t I know this? When the hell did this happen?”

Regulus starts to tense at the fact that he  _ isn’t leaving _ , Cynthia annoyedly sitting up.

“You don’t have to know  _ every _ detail of my life, now get out,” She points to the door, “If you need me it can wait.”

“No-”

“Yes!” She shoots back, “Out, now. Not a word about this.”

Vaughn holds his hands up in surrender, “Ok, ok, jeez I’m leaving.” He walks out of the room, shutting the door behind himself. Cynthia grabs her wand off of the nightstand, casting  _ Colloportus _ at the door to lock it. She loudly sighs, falling back on the pillows and staring up at the ceiling.

“Do you have Quidditch today?” She asks.

“No,” He replies, “Why?” 

“Today’s been so fucking shitty,” She rolls over, laying on him like she was before, “I don’t want you to leave.”

“I’m not going anywhere,” He assures her, “Do you want to tell me why today was so bad?”

“I got a letter from my parents,” Her voice drops quiet, “My grandfather has brain cancer. They found out yesterday.”

Regulus doesn’t say anything for a moment, not quite knowing what to say. “I’m sorry.”

“It just sucks, I have to go through it all again,” She quietly says, half into his chest, “I don’t want to, I thought I was done.”

He stays quiet again, waiting for her to say something else.

“I just want to go back to sleep and forget about it,” She mumbles, pulling herself in closer and grabbing one of Regulus’ arms to put across her back. He gets the message, loosely wrapping an arm around her while the other starts going through her hair again. He’s just doing what he’s seen.

She falls back asleep after a few minutes, Regulus trying to process what she told him. She  _ just _ lost her brother to it not even 4 years ago, and now she’s going through all that again? He knows why she’s been so on edge since he walked in. But, the issue is, Regulus has no idea how to help. He’s never been through that.

All he can do is be here, and apparently, at least right now, that’s enough. 

***

“Reggie,” Cynthia calls his attention up from the textbook he’s skimming on the table. Weird, this is his Study period and she isn’t in it.

“Hey Thia,” He marks his page and closes the book, “Do you need something? Don’t you have a class?” 

“Uh, yeah, about that,” She nervously fiddles with her hands, taking a seat in front of him, “I- uh, I can’t go to the game on Saturday, I’m sorry.”

“Oh, it’s fine,” He assures her, “Why?”

“I’ll be home for the weekend,” She tells him, “I’ll be gone tomorrow too, I’m coming back Sunday night. My parents wrote me, they- they need me back, just for the weekend.”

“Is everything alright? Did something happen?” He presses, having a feeling he knows what has her so worked up.

“You know,” She answers, her voice breaking a bit, “I have to put some stuff together, I’m leaving in about an hour, I just wanted to let you know so you didn’t think I was missing or something.”

“Well, uh,” He glances up at the teachers’ table, where the two supervising teachers are paying zero attention to them, “Want me to walk you there?”

“No, it’s fine,” She shakes her head, “I’m good, you were doing something.”

“Just Charms, I can pick it back up,” He replies, “You’re sure?”

“Positive,” She nods, “Can you just promise me you’ll be here when I get back?” 

“Of course,” He reassures her, “I’ll see you Sunday night.”

“I’ll see you then,” She stands up and heads back out of the room, Regulus looking back to his Charms and trying to get back in the groove he had before. He can’t seem to, though, rather continuing to let his mind wander to that the hell could have happened in a week. It just does not make any sense. 

Apparently, he’s popular today because he sees a familiar smiling face walking in the room and grabbing a seat in front of him. 

“Hi Reg!” James happily greets, “What’re you doing?”

“Studying?” Regulus hesitantly answers, “Why are you here?”

“To ask if you’re doing anything this weekend,” James replies, “Are you?”

Regulus shakes his head, “Other than practice tomorrow night if you count that as the weekend.”

“You’re back playing?”

“I’ve been playing since the beginning of this week,” Regulus corrects him, “It’s been almost a month.”

“Has it really been that long?” James shakes his head, “Anyway, the  _ right _ answer is that you’re going to the Quidditch game Saturday, right?”

Regulus shakes his head.

“Aww,” James whines before pausing, “Aren’t you going with Cynthia?”

“She- uh,” Regulus stalls, looking for a good way to phrase it, “Something came up, she’s busy.”

“When? You said she was yesterday, right?” James presses.

“Yeah, she told me today,” Regulus nods, “I’m  _ not _ going alone, I’m sorry.”

“You could- Well, maybe not,” James thinks, “I really want you to go, but I know what you mean. You don’t have anyone else to go with?”

Regulus shakes his head, “I have one friend.”

“You have me!”

“I have two friends,” Regulus corrects himself, “And one of them is playing.”

“Better,” James smiles, “But really, I want you to be there,  _ please _ ?”

Regulus sighs, “I’ll go, I’ll go.”

James’ face lights up, “Yay! You’re my favorite!”

“I better be,” Regulus deadpans, James laughing. “Is that what you came here for?”

“Oh! No, I came to ask if you got a letter from Mum today,” James says, “Did you?”

Regulus holds up the letter sitting next to him.

“She wrote me asking, so I had to ask you,” James explains, “She was worried since you weren’t responding as quickly as you normally do, so she said she wanted to make sure they weren’t taking forever.”

“Oh, no, I just kept forgetting,” Regulus shakes his head.

“Reg, forgetting? You never forget things,” James points out.

“I was just concussed, I think I have an excuse.”

“Ok, fair,” James laughs, “Is it better now? I’ve lost all sense of time.”

“Yeah, I’m pretty much fine now,” Regulus nods, leaving out the part about how his vision is still, unfortunately, not getting any better.

James drums his fingers on the table a moment, “What’re you working on?”

“Charms.”

“Gross,” James replies, “I like Transfiguration better.”

“I don’t like either,” Regulus answers, “I prefer Potions.”

James nods, “Yeah, that makes sense, not to mention Slughorn adores you.”

“Well, there are reasons he likes me, most of them have to do with my family,” Regulus counters.

“That’s also fair,” James glances at the clock on the wall, “Well, I’ll let you go back to Charms, I’m missing my valuable Minnie conversation time, it’s very important.”

“Of course.”

“I’ll see you soon, Reg!” James gets up from the table.

Regulus waves as he walks off from the table, “Bye, James.”

***

Cynthia lays, staring at the ceiling, trying to feel like she’s anywhere else but home right now. She hears her mother crying in the next room over, so loud she’s sure both her siblings can hear it from their rooms further down the hall. She really wishes she would cast a silencing charm on her room, Cynthia can’t take listening to that all night.

Someone knocks on her door, Cynthia sitting up and calling, “Come in.”

Her door opens and Cain sticks his head in, “Are you busy, koala”

Cynthia shakes her head, moving her legs in to let Cain come into the room and sit down. He reaches out and ruffles her hair.

“How are you feeling? I haven’t seen you since you got home,” He comments, “You haven’t taken a single thing out, either, you planning on moving back in ever?”

“I’m going back Sunday.”

“Yeah, but you’ll be here for 3 more days, you might as well take stuff out,” He reasons, “Why so eager to go back? Don’t you miss us?”

“Dearly,” She deadpans before sighing, “I just don’t want to be here right now, not for this.”

“Yeah, I know, it sucks,” Cain nods, “But enjoy the company while you’re here, even if it’s bittersweet. I missed you, idiot, you can’t be hiding from me.”

“I’m sorry,” She apologizes, “I just haven’t felt up to it.”

“Don’t give me that, you’re making me feel bad,” He rubs her shoulder, “Talk to me.”

“I don’t know, I’m just bummed, I guess,” She shrugs, “I was supposed to go to the Quidditch game on Saturday, I wanted to spend the weekend with- Nevermind on that one. But this just wasn't how I pictured spending my weekend.”

“Spend it with who?”

“No one,” She shakes her head, “It’s no one.”

“No, you have to tell me,” He presses, “Because I think I know who it is.”

“Are you trying to get me in trouble?” Cynthia shoots back, “It doesn’t matter.”

“You know I won’t tell anyone,” He replies, “I understand you two are close, I know  _ that _ isn’t going to break that. Not to mention...”

“That’s- that’s old, no,” She shakes her head.

“Old? What happened?” He furrows his brow in confusion, “Here, actually, we’ll go out tomorrow morning, the cafe down the road. You can catch me up on everything because you haven’t written about anything interesting.”

“I have to be careful,” She reminds him, “But yeah, I would like that.”

“Perfect,” He smiles, looking up at the wall a moment, “She’s loud from in here.”

Cynthia sighs, “Yeah, I know.”

“I’ll ask her to put a silencing charm on her room, you can’t sleep with that,” He gets up and walks towards the door, turning back in the doorway.

“Get some sleep, don’t stay up too late,” He tells her, “Promise you won’t?”

“I promise,” She replies, although she’s not sure that’s entirely true.

“Good, you better,” He jokingly threatens, “Goodnight, koala, I love you.”

“I love you too, Cain.”


	89. Just Fine

Cynthia pulls on her sweater, trying to tame her hair in the mirror. It isn’t really working, so she just decides to braid it back. It’s really not worth the struggle this morning.

She looks over when someone knocks on the door, “Come in.”

Cain opens the door and peeks his head in, “You ready, koala?” 

“Yeah,” She nods, grabbing another hair tie to put on her wrist in case this one snaps. She follows him out of the room, heading downstairs to where her dad is laboring over paperwork at the dinner table. 

“Where are you two going?” He questions, looking back at them. 

“The cafe down the road,” Cain answers, “Do you want anything?”

“Just get me what I normally get,” He nods, “Thank you, have fun, don’t let Cynthia bring home any boys.”

“Dad!” She whines, her dad just laughing.

“I just have to make sure,” He waves them off, “Go before you get a million questions from Mum.”

“Bye Dad!” Cain calls before he and Cynthia walk out of the house and start down the road towards the cafe. They’re both generally silent, Cynthia not really in the mood for small talk. Considering she’s about to spend her entire day at the hospital, she really doesn’t feel like she needs to be in the mood for anything. 

They both walk into the surprisingly quiet cafe, ordering the same thing that they have since Cynthia was 11. Cain and her take their stuff and sit down at the corner table they have always claimed as theirs. 

“So,” He starts, “What’s been new with you?”

Cynthia nervously smiles, glancing down at the table, “I mean, nothing  _ really _ .”

“Ok, spill, what’s going on with the ex-Black boy,” Cain presses, “Something happened, I know it.”

“You can’t tell anyone.”

“You know I keep secrets well,” He replies, “You have  _ me _ nervous, what happened?”

Cynthia sighs, “Well, do you want the whole story or just the outcome?”

“Tell me the outcome first, then the story,” He answers.

“Well,” She hesitates, “Reggie and I are dating.”

“You’re what?” He smiles, “Oh my goodness, koala has a boyfriend?” 

“Cain!” She buries her head in her hands, “Stop!”

“Come on! I’m happy for you,” He ruffles her hair and she looks back up, “I mean, I’m not a huge fan of him, but does he make you happy?”

“Yeah,” Cynthia answers, “Of course.”

“Then I’m happy,” He smiles, “Now tell me the story, I’m interested.”

“Well, I mean, we came back from break and he wouldn’t talk to me, which was weird. I’ll skip that part because it’s depressing for me but I pulled him aside and asked him why, and apparently the group he was in had all taken truth serum,” Cynthia explains.

“So he told you by accident?” Cain asks.

Cynthia nods, “Mhm, but we didn’t talk about it for another month. We actually just kind of- Gave each other space, almost, for a couple of weeks before we started talking again. I kept asking but he always said he wasn’t ready yet. I think he thought I was going to say I didn’t feel the same way.”

“And you didn’t just ignore him and tell him?” He questions, “If he feared rejection,  _ not _ rejecting him would have worked.”

“Well, I didn’t want to make him uncomfortable,” Cynthia reasons, “But yes, that’s eventually what I did.”

“And obviously it worked, because- well,” Cain gestures forward, Cynthia getting the point.

“Mhm,” Cynthia nods, “13 year old me is fascinated right now.”

“No kidding,” Cain laughs, “You’ve had a crush on him for a while.”

“Yeah,” Cynthia toys with the cup in front of her, “I mean, I was talking to him the other day, and he said he thinks he felt like that for a while too, he just didn’t know until someone put a name to it.”

“Who?” 

Cynthia nervously laughs, “How would you feel if my answer was James Potter?”

“Jeez,  _ that _ kid?” He sighs, “I’ve never met him, but I’ve heard quite a bit.”

“He’s actually not that bad,” Cynthia counters, “Well, he’s a lot, but Reggie likes him and I trust his judgment.”

“I mean, whatever gets the job done,” He laughs, both of them sitting in silence a moment before he asks another question, “So  _ other _ than that, is there anything else that’s new? Even if I know that boy runs your life.”

“Oh shut up,” She rolls her eyes, “I mean, it’s not nearly as interesting, but…”

***

Regulus looks up from the piano when someone knocks on the doorframe of the room, seeing Cynthia, barely smiling at him with Turtle on her shoulder. Her eyes are red and puffy, her face seemingly stained with tears. He has a feeling she had a really bad weekend.

“Hey Thia,” He greets, “Do you want me to come with you?”

Cynthia nods, Regulus picking up his book and following her back up to her dorm. He shuts the door behind the two of them, Cynthia setting Turtle down, who goes over to her pile of pillows in the corner that serves as her bed instead of getting on the bed. Cynthia sits down towards the foot of her bed, Regulus slipping his shoes off and dropping the book on the chair before walking over and sitting in front of her. Cynthia wastes no time wrapping herself around him, telling him absolutely nothing of what happened this weekend. He’s glad he spent today socially isolating himself so this doesn’t push him over the edge. 

Regulus lets her cling to him for a few minutes before he taps her on the shoulder and asks, “Do you want to lay down?”

“Yeah,” She nods, moving back to let him lay down. He fixes the pillows so his neck won’t hurt when he’s inevitably pinned here for a while. She lays her head down on top of him the second his arms are out of the way, doing the same thing she did last week, although this time she’s as close to him as he thinks is physically possible. Her head is tucked right under his chin, which Regulus really isn’t a huge fan of, but he doesn’t say anything. 

“Do you want to talk about what happened?” He quietly asks, Cynthia sighing before explaining.

“6 months,” She replies, “They don’t know how it got so bad.”

That’s what Regulus was hoping not to hear. “I’m sorry, Thia.”

“I spent most of the weekend in the hospital,” She tells him, “I think you know this, but my parent’s room is right next to mine, so I also got to listen to my mother scream cry for the entire weekend.”

Regulus stays quiet, just letting her get everything off her chest as he toys with her hair, which isn’t as well kept as it normally is.

“I barely slept, I just had a horrible weekend,” She sighs, “I wanted to be back here the second I walked in the door. No one seemed to understand why I maybe don’t want to be home, though, I just kept getting yelled at for acting like I didn’t want to be there. It was exhausting.” 

Regulus, once again, doesn’t say anything. He really doesn’t know what to say.

“But I’m back now, it’s ok,” She shifts a bit, “I just don’t want to think about it, tell me about your weekend.”

“I didn’t do much,” Regulus answers, “I went to the Quidditch game Saturday, but that’s about it.”

“You went?” She questions, surprised.

“Mhm,” He affirms, “James really wanted me to go, I couldn’t say no to him.”

“How was it? Who won?” 

“Gryffindor won, although it was close,” Regulus replies, “It wasn’t that fun, though, you’re the first person I’ve talked to all day.”

“I’m honored,” She weakly laughs, “What about practice Friday?”

“I mostly worked alone,” He replies, “It was pretty boring.”

She nods but doesn’t say anything for a moment. “Do you want to go to Hogsmeade this weekend?”

“Sure,” He answers, slightly confused for why she’s asking when they already agreed on it. “I need to finish up James’ birthday gift.”

“Right, yeah,” She remembers.

The room falls into silence, and Regulus is sure Cynthia is dozing off on top of him. Her listless tone of voice throughout the entire conversation told him she was falling asleep anyway. Although it’s late, he lets her get some rest for a little while. He’ll be fine, he wouldn’t be asleep right now anyway.

He checks his watch after they’re there for a while, and it’s already almost 11. He does need to go back to his own dorm and wind down if he has any hope of getting any sleep tonight. He doesn’t want to, but he taps her on the shoulder.

“Thia,” He whispers, “It’s late.”

She shakes her head.

“I have to go back,” He presses, “It’s almost 11.”

She shakes her head again, “Stay here, it’s fine.”

He looks down at her skeptically, although she can’t see him. “What do you mean?” 

She props her chin up on his chest, looking at him, “Stay the night, the bed fits the two of us.”

He totally shuts down at the  _ thought _ of spending the night with her. He’s done it before, but he was not on the bed. He was on the ground with his stuff, and even that was a lot. He normally hates sharing a room with people, this might be pushing it. The only time he’s caved on that rule is when he really needs the sleep, and he got at least 5 hours of sleep last night, that’s a lot for him. That condition does not apply here.

“Please?” She pleads, “We don’t even have to touch one another, I’ll put Turtle between us. I just don’t want to spend the night alone.”

“We have classes tomorrow,” He points out, “And I’m still fully dressed, I have to go back to my dorm anyway.”

“Get your stuff tomorrow morning,” She answers, “You can borrow the clothes I have in here, some of it is yours anyway.”

Regulus sighs, not really seeing a valid argument for him to say no. She covered pretty much all of his fears.

“Fine,” He caves, Cynthia beaming from ear to ear. It almost makes it worth it.

“Thank you,” She says before unwrapping herself from him, sitting up and stretching. He sits up beside her, watching as she sleepily gets up and walks over to her dresser in the corner, opening one of the drawers and grabbing stuff out of it. She shuts it and turns back, tossing something to him. “That’s yours.”

He grabs what she threw off the bed, seeing, of course, some of his clothes she at one point took from him and never gave back. She has a tendency to do that, he doesn’t get it. 

He gets up and heads into her bathroom to change, hearing her continuing to rummage through drawers as he does. He opens the door slowly when he’s done, hoping she is either already changed or is waiting for him. Unfortunately, getting yelled at tells him it’s neither of those.

“Wait!” She yells, Regulus slamming the door back closed. He hears her laugh, but he doesn’t move until he hears her call. “You’re good now.”

He still opens the door slowly, walking out to her carrying Turtle to bed. She pulls the covers back and puts her in the center of the bed, Turtle wanting none of it. She just gets back down off the bed and goes back to her corner, Cynthia sighing.

“I don’t think she wants that,” She comments, sitting down on the bed.

Regulus walks over and sits next to her, “I trust you not to do anything, it should be fine.”

“I’m glad you trust me,” She laughs, yawning, “Ok, we’re going to bed, I’m tired. Do you want the right or the left?”

“I sleep on my right, so I’ll take the right side,” He answers, the two of them getting up. Cynthia heads over to turn off all the light, Regulus climbing into bed. Anxiety seems to claw at him, but he ignores it. He trusts Cynthia, he just keeps reminding himself of that. He hears Cynthia get in behind him, who is presumably also facing towards the wall. Silence falls over the room a moment before Cynthia speaks up.

“Goodnight, Reggie,” She says. Regulus smiles.

“Goodnight, Thia.”

***

Regulus is sure it’s been a couple of hours, he’s been in and out of sleep since he laid down. He expected this, and as infuriating as it is to be tired and unable to fall asleep, he’d rather feel like that here than in his tiny bed in a room he hates.

Cynthia’s measured breathing he’s been listening to hitches, stopping for a moment before he hears her whimper. He freezes, listening for what happened, hoping it was just a fleeting bad dream. It isn’t, though, and he hears her breathing hitch another few times after that. He doesn't get to do anything, though, because she just rolls over, moving closer to him. An arm wraps around him from the top, Cynthia pressing her chest to his back and resting her head against the back of his head. Her other arm stalls a moment before she sticks it through the space between his shoulder and his head, which he does _ not _ like. He pushes her hand back and she listens, pulling it back, much to his relief. Everything else is fine, that’s just a little too much for him.

He hears her breathing level out again, and he oddly starts to feel more tired than he was before. He feels himself start to nod off to sleep, slowly drifting off with the arm wrapped around him and the warm body right behind him. He hates to admit it, but he actually likes this, he never saw himself letting someone get so goddamn close to him.

But Cynthia always seems to break all his rules. 

And maybe this is a little more than just fine.


	90. You're Back!

Regulus makes his way to Gryffindor Tower, trying to quell his nerves about this gift. Not only has Cynthia assured him it’s nice, but it’s  _ James _ . James would love a pile of rocks if Regulus gave it to him, it doesn’t take much. But Regulus is still nervous he isn’t going to like it. 

He walks into a few people strewn about the Common Room, most not batting an eye as he heads up the boy’s dormitory staircase. Regulus knocks on their door, which almost immediately opens to James, who looks ecstatic. 

“Reg! Hi!” He happily greets, “I haven’t seen you in forever!”

“It’s been like 3 days,” Regulus replies, confused. He saw him earlier this week at practice, he worked with him. 

“No, it was,” James counts back the days on his fingers, “4 days, I haven’t seen you in 4 days.”

“Are you ever going to let Reg in?” Sirius asks from in the room, although he isn’t on Remus’ bed like he normally is. 

“Oh, sorry,” James steps to the side, letting Regulus walk into the room. He sees Sirius on James’ bed, filled with stuff presumably from his parents. Remus and Peter are over on Peter’s bed, looking over at what’s happening with him and James. James goes over and jumps in his bed, landing almost entirely on Sirius. 

“Ow, James!” Sirius laughs, “You’re heavy!”

“No I’m not,” James lays back so he’s pretty much laying his head in Sirius’ lap, “That’s mean, and it’s my birthday!”

“So I get to be mean to you while you’re surrounded by gifts,” Sirius replies, “That's even better.”

James rolls his eyes but sits up, moving towards Sirius so there’s a spot on the bed for Regulus. “Reg, you can sit there if you want.”

Regulus grabs a seat on James’ bed, Sirius wrapping himself around James and looking on as Regulus hands the box in his hands over, “Happy birthday, James.”

“Thank you!” He happily chirps, opening the box to see the two smaller wrapped boxes inside. They’re around the same size, James picking up the right on first. 

“Both of these were kind of a shot in the dark, I’m sorry,” Regulus apologizes.

“I’m sure they’re great, Reg, you have good taste,” James comments before opening what's in his hands. It’s the safer of the two he bought. He takes the top off the small box to reveal two silver cufflinks, a pair of black deer antlers imprinted on each one of them. James is absolutely beaming, “Holy shit Reg, these are cool.”

“We can match,” Sirius says, “I have a pair that looks almost the same Reg gave me, just with pawprints instead.”

“ _ And _ Sirius has matching ones? I feel so special!” James puts the box lid back on and puts it back in the other box, taking out the next one. 

“This one I’m really not sure,” Regulus remarks.

“Knowing you, I’ll love it,” James replies, taking off the paper and opening an almost identical box. Inside is a ring, composed of three rings linked together. James picks it up and shifts it around in his fingers, very entertained with the way they move within one another. “Oh, I can’t wait to use the  _ shit _ out of this.”

“Try it on,” Sirius tells him, James slipping the ring on. It fits perfectly, James almost immediately starting to play with it on his finger.

“You’re a good gift-giver, Reg, I love them both,” He smiles, “Thank you.”

Regulus silently sighs in relief, glad he managed to pin a couple of things that James appreciated. Regulus is really only good at anything jewelry-like, so he’s happy he’s found out where James fits into that.

“Can I have a hug too?” James excitedly asks, Regulus nodding. James breaks away from Sirius, giving Regulus an attack hug and catching him off guard, knocking them back onto the bed. Regulus laughs at James’ excitement, although he’s putting a time limit on how long James can squeeze the absolute life out of him. 

“Okay, okay,” Regulus says, “Don’t suffocate me.”

“Sorry,” James sits back up, letting Regulus do the same. “I got excited.”

“I could tell,” Regulus laughs.

“I love both the gifts,” James looks down at his hand subconsciously toying with his ring, “I have no idea where you would even get them, though.”

“There’s a shop at Hogsmeade, it’s all the way in the corner. The owner handmakes stuff like that,” Regulus explains, “I’m always in there, I’ve been looking for weeks. The cufflinks I had to have her make, though, they’re oddly specific. She said she only did it because she likes me.”

“I’ve never seen a handmade jewelry store at Hogsmeade, that’s so weird,” James comments, his eyes still on his hand. “I’m going to break this, I know it.”

“It’s pretty sturdy, Prongs,” Sirius laughs, “I will be surprised if you break it.”

“Watch me,” James pauses a second, “Oh! Reg, I have something to tell you.”

“Oh no.”

“No no, it’s good,” He assures him, “So, the full is next Monday, which is the day after we go back. Moo- Remus is staying with us over break, and because we don’t want to leave him Sirius and I are staying here until the day after so we all come at the same time, so it’ll be just you, Mum, and Dad for a couple of days.”

Regulus has to think about how he feels about it for a second, but he’s pretty sure he likes that scenario. He feels bad for Remus, of course, but being alone in a house where that’s not a hazard probably will be a nice couple of days. 

“Reg is reveling in the feeling of being an only child,” Sirius laughs, “Don’t get too comfortable, we’re coming back.”

“You don’t  _ have _ to,” Regulus jokes back.

“Is this Reg’s plot to kill us?” James asks, “So he can have Mum and Dad all to himself.”

“I would do that, I have to admit that,” Sirius nods, “I would love to live as an only child with your parents, although I’d turn into you.”

“Hey! I’m great,” James argues, “Right, Reg?”

Regulus nods, “I’d prefer James over you if I had to pick.”

“Because we’re related, that’s not fair,” Sirius counters, all of them looking back as someone opens the door. “Oh, Marlene’s here, we’re kicking you out Reg.”

“Fine with me,” Regulus gets up, James getting up and pulling him into another tight hug. Regulus just sucks it up, it’s making James happy. 

“Thank you Reg,” He says before stepping back, “I’ll probably see you later this week sometime, right?”

“Probably,” Regulus nods, starting towards the door, “Bye, James.”

“Bye Reg!”

***

“I can’t believe you’re getting the house to yourself,” Cynthia laughs as they step off the train, Regulus scanning the crowd for a familiar face.

“Neither can I,” He replies, “But hey, I’ll take it.”

“I’m jealous,” Cynthia says, also looking around for whoever is getting her. Regulus’ head shoots over when someone calls his name. 

“Reg!” Andromeda calls, walking through the moving crowds of people up to him. She doesn’t get the chance to say anything before Nymphadora, who was holding her hand, runs up and hugs his legs. 

“You’re back!” She cheers, stepping back and holding her arms up. Regulus picks her up and almost buckles under the surprise increase in weight from last time. 

“Wow,” He comments, “You got big.”

“Yeah! I’m almost 4!” She tells him excitedly, holding 4 fingers up.

“Really?” He asks, “You’re so old!”

She smiles excitedly and throws her arms around his neck, hugging him with all the pent-up excitement she can’t get out elsewhere. 

“She got heavy, didn’t she?” Andromeda laughs, Regulus nodding. He turns to Cynthia, who is still searching for someone. 

“Dora,” He calls her attention, “Say hi to Cynthia.”

“Oh oh!” She sits back, waving at Cynthia, “Hi!”

“Hi there!” Cynthia waves back.

“Is this the friend you told me about?” Andromeda asks, walking up behind him. 

“Yeah, this is Cynthia,” Regulus introduces her, “Cynthia, this is Andromeda.”

“Hello,” Cynthia greets, glancing backward, “Sorry, I’m afraid my parents are going to show up.”

“I understand, it’s totally fine,” Andromeda nods. 

“I think your brother just stepped on the platform,” Regulus points behind her, Cynthia looking back. 

“Oh good, he will pretend not to see me as I say goodbye,” She laughs, Regulus trying to pull Nymphadora off him. 

“No no,” She shakes her head, “I’m staying.”

“Just for a second,” He tries to bargain, although Andromeda just steps in and takes her. She’s not happy about it, but it’ll only be for a minute. 

Cynthia pulls him into a hug, “Have a good break,” She says, “Maybe I can sneak over again.”

He laughs, “Hopefully.”

“I’ll see you in a couple of weeks,” She grabs her trunk and waves, “Bye Reggie.”

“Bye Thia,” He calls, taking back Nymphadora. 

“Miss you already!” Cynthia yells back, Regulus laughing. He turns back to Andromeda.

“I have to get you back, Mrs. Potter says she wants to see you,” Andromeda grabs his trunk for him, “I’ll take this since you have the little monkey clinging to you.” Andromeda ruffles Nymphadora’s hair, who laughs. 

“No, no touching!” Nymphadora playfully pushes her off, Andromeda holding the hand she was using up.

“Ok, no touching,” She concedes, “We’re bringing Reg home, are you going to hold on?”

“Mhm,” She nods, “I’ll be good.”

“Good,” Andromeda smiles, “Well, are you ready, Reg?”

Regulus nods.

“Perfect, let’s get you home.”

***

Andromeda knocks on the Potters’ door, which opens a minute later. Mrs. Potter smiles at them. 

“Oh hello! Wonderful to see you Regulus!” Andromeda takes Nymphadora from him, Mrs. Potter pulling him into a hug, which wraps him in the best feeling of safety, “I’m glad you’re back, dear.”

“Me too,” He smiles, Mrs. Potter stepping back and gesturing for them to come in. Regulus walks inside, Andromeda following holding Nymphadora and pulling his trunk behind her. Mr. Potter comes out from down the hallway with their room, smiling at him.

“Hello Regulus,” He walks over and pulls him into a hug, although only for a moment, stepping back and ruffling his hair, “Good to have you back, kid.”

Regulus smiles at him, turning back when he feels a small hand patting the back of his head. Nymphadora is beaming, reaching out eagerly for him. 

“Reglus Reglus,” She grabs at him, Regulus taking her from Andromeda. “Hi!” 

“Hi Dora,” He laughs.

“Are you- are you um- are you,” She stammers, “I’m turning 4!”

“Are you?” He questions, “When are you turning 4?”

“Uhm,” She looks over to her mother.

“When is your birthday, Dora?” She prompts, “You know, come on.”

“Oh! April 12th,” She tells him, “Yeah, you’re coming!”

“I’m coming?” He answers, more like a question because he didn’t even know when her birthday was before right now.

“You have to!” She nods enthusiastically. Regulus looks over to Andromeda, who is smiling and shaking her head at her daughter. 

“I will, don’t worry,” He laughs, “Will Sirius and James go?”

“Yeah!” She happily replies, looking around the room, “Where are they?”

“They’re at school right now,” Regulus replies, “They’ll be here soon?’

“How soon?”

“On Tuesday,” Regulus answers, “Very soon.”

“Tuesday,” She repeats, clearly having no idea what that means.

Mrs. Potter asks Mr. Potter to start setting the table, and he hears Andromeda sigh before saying, “Dora, we’re going to go home now.”

“No no! I’m staying!” She shakes her head, “You can go.”

Andromeda laughs, “No, sweetheart, that’s not how this works. We have to go back, Dad made dinner.”

“I don’t want it,” She shakes her head again, “I’ll stay here.”

“Come on,” Andromeda presses, “Say goodbye to Reg, we’re going back home.”

Nymphadora buries her head in Regulus’ shoulder, her hair shifting to a deep blue. “No,” She murmurs, “No leaving.”

“I’ll see you again really soon,” He assures her, “Ok?”

“Ok,” She sits back to look at him, teary-eyed, “Promise?”

“I promise,” He nods, Nymphadora giving him one more hug before Andromeda takes her back. 

“Guess what Reg? I’m probably making you babysit again this week,” Andromeda tells him, “Ted and I just want to go out and you’re perfect to make sure she doesn’t burn the house down, so I’ll probably write you once we decide on a day.”

“Sounds fine to me,” Regulus shrugs.

“Perfect, I guess I’ll see you then,” Andromeda smiles, looking up at Mr. and Mrs. Potter, “Thank you again.”

“Of course,” Mrs. Potter replies, “I’m sure I’ll see you again soon.”

“Me and Ted and pawning Dora off on Reg sometime soon, so you definitely will,” Andromeda laughs.

Nymphadora says something, Andromeda just rubbing her head.

“I think we need to get home for dinner,” Andromeda bids her goodbyes to everyone, giving Regulus a weird side hug before walking out. 

“Regulus, you’re free to come sit, I’m just finishing up,” Mrs. Potter says, Regulus walking over and grabbing his seat, looking back as she continues talking. “And since it’s just you, I get to hear all your stories first before James and Sirius tell me about all the things they  _ shouldn’t  _ be doing.”

“There was definitely a lot of that,” Regulus affirms, Mrs. Potter laughing.

She walks over and sets two plates on the table, one in front of him and one on the other side of the table, “The two of them always seem to find trouble.”

“Hey, good for them,” Mr. Potter comments, taking his seat at the head of the table. Mrs. Potter grabs the seat in front of Regulus rather than the one next to him, considering it’s just the three of them. 

She smiles, “So, how has school been?”


	91. Catching Up

“I mean, school has been fine,” Regulus nods, “Kind of all over the place, but fine.”

“How about we talk about all the injuries you managed to get?” Mrs. Potter jokingly prods, “I’m going to have to put you in a permanent bubble, goodness.”

“They were both Quidditch injuries, correct?” Mr. Potter clarifies, Regulus nodding. “That’s about par for the course, well, maybe not the concussion.”

“You didn’t tell me much of that,” Mrs. Potter points out, “How bad was it?”

“I’m not sure,” He shrugs, having little gauge for the severity of a concussion. 

“I didn’t work with many concussions in my day, but,” She starts, “I do know concussion scales are loosely based on the time you were unconscious and the time you had amnesia following. How long were you unconscious for?”

He thinks a moment, the memory of everything that happened that day still a little blurry, “Long enough to get from the Pitch to the Hospital Wing and for her to treat me.”

“Ok, that’s a while,” Mrs. Potter nods, “I would ask you about the amnesia, but that would defeat the purpose slightly.”

Regulus lets out a small laugh.

“Did everything heal alright, do you feel fine now?” She asks, “Sometimes concussion symptoms tend to linger.”

“I’m fine now,” Regulus tells her, continuing to ignore the fact that he can no longer see the details on the rim of the plate like he used to.

“That’s good, that’s all I want,” She replies, “You scared me, I know James is dramatic but generally when magical treatments are administered through an injection that’s when I get a little worried. He said Poppy gave you quite a few.”

“Mhm,” Regulus nods, “I was out for 2, there were 4 in total, I think.”

“That’s not good at all, goodness,” She sighs, “But, I trust Poppy, I trained her, I know she knows what she’s doing.”

Regulus nods again, continuing to eat his dinner as they sit in silence a moment. 

“Oh, James was telling me about the gift you got him,” Mrs. Potter says, “He said it was a, quote, “very fun ring”, but he’s bad at written descriptions, what exactly was it?”

“It’s made of these three interlocking rings, they twist around one another,” Regulus explains, “It looked like the kind of thing James would play with all the time.”

“He told me he had already used it a ton, something like that sounds perfect for him,” Mrs. Potter comments.

“I was nervous, I didn’t know what to get,” Regulus admits, “I always get Sirius the same kind of thing, but James doesn’t wear a ton of rings and pins like he does.”

“Honestly, James is happy with whatever you give him,” Mr. Potter remarks, “If it came from you, he’d be more than content.”

“He almost squeezed me to death,” Regulus replies.

Mrs. Potter laughs, “Yeah, that sounds like him. How is that friend doing, by the way, the one you had over? Oh, goodness, what was her name?” 

“Cynthia,” He reminds, her, Mrs. Potter nodding in realization.

“Yes, I don’t know why I didn’t remember that,” She shakes her head, “I digress, how are things with her?”

“Good,” Regulus nods, really contemplating saying something about their relationship but deciding against it. “Yeah, good.”

She stares at him skeptically, “I feel like there’s something you’re not telling us.”

He fails at fighting a smile, “It’s nothing.”

“Mmm, I don’t think it is,” Mr. Potter playfully pokes, “This sounds like when James talks about Lily, I have a feeling I know where this is going.”

“Not quite,” Regulus says before he can think about it. He so wants to say something, he just needs to tell someone and Mr. and Mrs. Potter are probably his safest and most supportive options. “You can’t tell Sirius.”

“Our lips are sealed,” Mrs. Potter assures him, “With James too, because he’ll tell Sirius in a heartbeat.”

Regulus nods, pausing a moment before telling them, “Cynthia and I are dating.” 

“That’s wonderful!” Mrs. Potter smiles.

Mr. Potter rubs his shoulder, “Good for you, kid.”

Regulus smiles, feeling the relief of both getting to tell someone that and the supportive response. He’s so happy he got to do that.

“She seemed very sweet when I met her, I trust that she’s good for you,” Mrs. Potter says.

“And, you know,” Mr. Potter winks at him, Mrs. Potter lightly hitting him.

“Fleamont, he’s 15!” She exclaims.

“And so was I when-”

“No no, enough talk of this,” She stops him, “Do not finish that sentence.”

“One day, Mia,” He laughs, “One day.”

“Not today,” She shakes her head, “We’re happy for Regulus, nothing else.”

“I  _ am _ happy for him,” He replies, “I’m glad that worked out for you Regulus.”

Regulus just smiles, definitely a little flustered by his teasing but oddly not minding it. It’s loving, so Regulus will take it.

“So,” Mrs. Potter starts, “What stories can I expect from Sirius and James? How much havoc did they cause?”

Regulus laughs, “Well…”

***

Mrs. Potter knocks on Regulus’ door, “Come grab breakfast when you’re ready, Regulus.”

He tiredly sits up, glancing over at the clock. Odd, it’s 10:30, which’s way later than she normally wakes him up. Although she said whenever he’s ready, so they probably aren’t having breakfast at the table today.

He gets out of bed and heads downstairs, a plate of food already on the table.

“Good morning dear,” Mrs. Potter greets, “That right there is yours, it has a warming charm on it. Oh, and,” She walks over to the counter and grabs something, Regulus walking over to her. “This came for you.”

Regulus looks at the letter, figuring it’s probably Andromeda. He opens it, her handwriting too small for him to read up close. He doesn’t even think about it, holding the letter out a little bit further and squinting his bad eye.

“Regulus,” Mrs. Potter calls his attention up, “Do you have a hard time seeing close up?”

His anxiety spikes, he didn’t mean to let her notice. “Oh no, it’s fine,” He fails at assuring her.

“No, I don’t think it is,” She walks up to him, moving his arm so the letter is within his bad field of vision. She points at the paper, “What word is that, dear?”

He squints at it, but her handwriting is too loopy and connected, he has no idea what it says. He just shakes his head and looks back up at her.

“How long has it been like that?” She asks.

“It got worse when I got the concussion,” He replies, silently cursing at himself for telling her it got worse.

“Worse?” She questions, “When did it get bad?”

“Uhh,” He nervously runs his thumb across the paper, “It’s not a great story.”

“That’s alright, tell me anyway,” She urges him.

“I had pink eye when I was 7, we didn’t get it treated for a while,” He answers, “When we did I still couldn’t see clearly out of that eye.”

“Oh goodness, that’s no good,” She comments, “Which eye?”

“My left,” He tells her. 

“Thank you for telling me, dear,” She sighs, “I’ll have to book you an eye doctor appointment, I want to have that checked.”

“It’s fine,” He tries to brush her off, but she doesn’t take no for an answer.

“Mm-mm,” She shakes her head, “If you’re struggling to see I want to get that fixed, and the origins of that problem aren’t sitting quite well with me.”

Regulus doesn’t say anything, still not a fan of her fussing over him. 

“It’ll be fine, it’ll help, I promise,” She assures him, “Now go have breakfast, don’t worry about it too much.”

“Thank you,” He nods, Mrs. Potter rubbing his shoulder before he walks off to sit at the table. As much as he doesn’t want her dealing with it if something makes it easier for him to see he will totally take it. It’s impossible to do anything easily when all the letters look the same.

He holds the letter back out to read it, actually needing to know what Andromeda wrote him about.

_ Regulus, _

_ I know I just saw you yesterday, but I wanted to get your opinion on a couple of different things.  _

_ Ted and I were thinking of going out Friday night and leaving Dora with you, although we aren’t completely married to that idea. A Friday night just felt like a nice night to go out. _

_ You’ll have to run this by Mrs. Potter, and be ok with this yourself, but Ted and I were thinking of staying somewhere overnight if you're up for watching her for that long. She’s a handful, so I totally get it if that’s a little too much for you. But the offer is there, we both trust you enough for that. _

_ Just let me know how you’re feeling about all of this. Once again, you’re a saint, she only likes behaving when you’re there.  _

_ ~ Andromeda and Ted _

Regulus looks back at Mrs. Potter.

“What did she say, dear?” She asks. 

“She said they were thinking Friday night,” Regulus replies, “I mean, it’s up to you, but she also suggested me watching her overnight, but that’s not set in stone.”

“I would have no issue with you babysitting overnight,” She shrugs, “If Andromeda and Ted are comfortable with leaving her with you I’m comfortable with letting you go. I’m sure they don’t get away overnight much.”

Regulus nods, “I’ll let her know, thank you.”

“Of course dear,” She smiles, walking over and looking down at the plate in front of him before tapping on the table, “But eat a little more before you do.”

He nods again, starting to pick at the plate sitting in front of him. The room is quiet, other than the running water of Mrs. Potter washing dishes behind him. It’s nice, he really missed being back home.

However, that quiet is interrupted by the flare of the fireplace, out of it coming a letter. Regulus glances back at Mrs. Potter, who seemingly didn’t notice anything coming out of the fire. He gets up and walks over into the living room, picking it up off the ground. A scratchy  _ Aunt Effie _ is written on the front and Regulus is pretty sure he knows who it is.

“Did a letter come through?” She asks as he walks over, “Is it James or Sirius?”

He shakes his head, handing it to her. She looks down at it and sighs, “Thank you, I think this is Haydn again. Go back to your breakfast, dear.” 

He walks back to the table and sits down, more wanting to know what that letter said than eat his breakfast. He’s almost positive Beauxbatons’ break is the same time that theirs is, so he’s only been home for one night. What could have possibly happened is beyond Regulus.

“Regulus,” Mrs. Potter calls his attention back, “How much would you mind Haydn spending the day here? He said he needs to catch up on work that Fiona has been bothering him about since he came home Saturday, but they have Diane and her kids over at the moment, so their house is a little loud.”

“I don’t mind,” Regulus replies. 

“I’ll write him back then,” She goes into one of the drawers and pulls out a piece of paper and a pen, starting to write back to Haydn. Regulus grabs the letter Andromeda sent him and heads upstairs to his room, pulling out his stationery and writing her back a letter. It’s short, just telling her he’s comfortable with everything she suggested. Watching Nymphadora overnight will be interesting, but he’s not doing anything better. 

He seals it and heads back downstairs, handing it to the owl and watching it fly out of the kitchen window. He heads into the piano room, making sure to leave the door cracked open. Mrs. Potter asked him to while he was playing last night, and there are still a couple of pieces he's worked on that he wants her to hear sitting out in the living room. Although, he doesn’t have that many, since there were a couple of weeks where he couldn’t play at all. 

He’s only playing for about 20 minutes before he hears voices grow louder from the living room. He gets up from the piano and pokes his head out of the room. He sees Haydn greeting Mrs. Potter, carrying a bag over his shoulder. He looks over to Regulus and waves, Regulus noticing how tired he looks. 

“Hello Regulus,” He greets, Regulus waving back. 

“Haydn dear, what happened here?” Mrs. Potter asks, running her finger over something on his face. 

“Oh, one of the triplets, it’s fine,” He assures her. 

“It’s not too bad, I’ll trust you on that,” She says, “You’re welcome to stake a claim wherever you’d like, James and Sirius aren’t home so you shouldn’t have anyone annoying you. I’ll be downstairs if you need me.”

He nods, “Thank you so much, Aunt Effie.”

“Of course, dear,” She smiles before she heads downstairs. Haydn looks over to Regulus. 

“Would you mind if I worked in there?” He asks, “I’ll be quiet, I just want another warm body in the room.”

Regulus shrugs, “I don’t mind.”

Haydn smiles, “Thank you.”

Regulus walks back into the piano room, Haydn following behind him. Regulus takes his seat at the piano, Haydn sitting in the cushioned spot against the wall. He starts to take out the stuff he’s working on and Regulus finds his place again, continuing to play through the piece he was working on before. He favors picking calmer spots of the music since Haydn seemed a little worn down. He also favors stuff he knows, since reading the music in front of him poses a particular challenge.

He sees Haydn repeatedly rubbing his eyes and annoyedly sighing at what he’s working on, Regulus assuming he doesn’t know what he’s doing. Regulus wants to help with it but feels weird just asking what it is, especially because it could be something he’s horrible at.

Regulus’ eyes started to get really strained trying to squint at what he’s playing, Regulus deciding to take a break from reading the music and refocus on the rest of the room for a moment. In the minute of silence, Haydn speaks up.

“I’m sorry, I know you’re practicing,” He starts, “But do you take Arithmancy?”

Regulus nods.

“Do you know how to calculate,” He points down at the paper and hesitantly reads, “Applied pragmatic future probabilities and their margins of error?”

“Mhm,” Regulus nods, walking over to sit in front of him, “Can I see the problem?”

Haydn hands him the paper, “Ignore my crossed-out work, I don’t have any clue what I’m doing.”

Regulus reads through the problem, knowing exactly how to solve it. He’s tutored Cynthia a million times in Arithmancy, he can do this. Not to mention this topic isn’t that hard.

Regulus moves so he’s sitting next to Haydn, pointing at a part of the problem, “You’re going to start by underlining all the important numbers, here…”


	92. Welcome Home

Haydn hands over the sheet, having Regulus check the final problem he has to work on. Regulus looks it over, checking to make sure everything looks right.

He nods and hands it back, “Mhm, that’s right.”

Haydn smiles, “You’re a lifesaver, Regulus, I would have never gotten this done. Thank you so much.”

“It’s no problem,” Regulus replies, “I like Arithmancy.”

“I couldn’t  _ imagine _ , I despise it,” He shakes his head, putting away what he’s working on and pulling something else out, “I prefer Herbology, but you’ve seen my room, so I think you know that.”

“A little,” Regulus laughs, “Astronomy and Potions are my favorite subjects, other than Arithmancy.”

“Potions is cool,” Haydn agrees, looking down at what paper he pulled out, “This is Astronomy, I’m also horrible at Astronomy.”

“Do you need help?” Regulus asks.

“You don’t have to,” Haydn says, “But if you’re not doing anything that would be great, yeah.”

“What’re you working on?” Regulus looks over at the paper, completely unable to read it that close.

“We’re doing a constellation study,” Haydn tells him, “On, uhh, Leo.”

“Oh,” Regulus smiles, “I know a lot about Leo, what do you need to know?”

“I just didn’t do this worksheet, so pretty much everything, but I think I know some of it,” Haydn reads the first question, “What is the brightest star in Leo?”

Regulus stifles a laugh, watching Haydn try to think of an answer. Haydn looks over at him confused before realizing.

“Is it Regulus?” Haydn asks, Regulus nodding.

“Mhm,” He affirms.

“Aw, you’re named after a star?” Haydn questions as he writes down the answer, “That’s kind of cool, why didn’t I realize that?”

Haydn goes to read the next question, both of them looking up when the door opens and Mrs. Potter pokes her head around the door, “Oh, hello boys.”

“Hi Aunt Effie,” Haydn greets, “Regulus is helping me with all the work I don’t get.”

“That’s great,” She smiles, “Are either of you hungry? It’s around lunchtime, although Regulus I know you just had breakfast a few hours ago.”

“I haven’t eaten today, so I’m a little hungry,” Haydn answers. 

“It’s almost 2! That’s no good, come here, I’ll make you lunch,” Mrs. Potter beckons him to follow her, “Regulus, do you want anything?” 

Regulus shakes his head, “I’m alright, thank you.”

“Just let me know if you want anything, alright?” She replies, Regulus nodding. She and Haydn walk out of the room, leaving the door open just a crack. Regulus decides he can play a little bit of piano before Haydn comes back, getting up and sitting back at the piano. He starts where he left off, happy to get his hands moving again.

Although he has to admit, even when trying to talk him through Arithmancy, Haydn is kind of enjoyable to spend time with.

***

Regulus walks down the stairs to head to dinner, kind of excited to have a  _ third _ dinner with just Mr. and Mrs. Potter. Everything is much more fun when he doesn’t have to split the attention with Sirius and James, who demand quite a bit of attention.

His head shoots over when he hears the fire flare fiercely, seeing two people step out of it. Sirius and James step through the fire and into the living room, dragging behind them their trunks.

“Oh! You all are back,” Mrs. Potter walks into the living room to greet them, Mr. Potter doing the same when he comes out of the hallway. Regulus walks a little closer, watching as Mr. Potter takes their things and Sirius and James grab seats on the couch. 

While they’re giving their hellos, two more people step through. This time it’s Remus and Madam Pomfrey, where Remus is clearly relying on her to keep on his feet and Madam Pomfrey holding Remus’ trunk. She helps him sit on the sofa chair in the living room before greeting Mrs. Potter. Mr. Potter takes his stuff, too, putting it against the wall.

“Regulus dear,” Mrs. Potter looks over to him, “Can you go grab the healing box from the bathroom upstairs?” 

Regulus nods, heading upstairs and grabbing what Mrs. Potter asked him to, going back downstairs and handing it to her over the couch. 

“Thank you, dear,” She thanks, pulling something out of it and starting to explain something to Madam Pomfrey. James looks back.

“Hi Reg!” He happily greets, “Crazy seeing you here.”

“Hi James,” Regulus laughs.

“No hi for me?” Sirius questions.

“You didn’t say anything to me.”

“Eh,” Sirius shrugs, “That’s fair. Are you mad we’re back?”

“Well, we were just going to eat dinner, so yeah, a little,” Regulus replies, looking up to see Madam Pomfrey talking to Mrs. Potter about something.

“Did you do anything fun while we weren’t here?” James asks.

“Haydn was over yesterday and Andromeda picked me up from the platform,” Regulus tells him, “Other than that, no.”

“Aww, I missed  _ both _ of that?” James whines, “Why was Haydn over?”

“He had work he needed to finish,” Regulus answers, looking up when Madam Pomfrey looks over at them.

“James, Sirius, you know the rules, don’t be all over Remus until he’s healed, got it?” She tells them both

“Mhm, we know we know,” James nods. 

“Good, I’m unfortunately trusting you,” She sighs, looking back at Mrs. Potter. 

“I’ll make sure Remus is just fine,” Mrs. Potter assures her, “I do know what I’m doing, Poppy.”

“I know, I know, I trust you, I just get nervous,” She laughs, giving her a hug before waving goodbye to Remus and stepping back into the fire, flooing out of the house.

Mrs. Potter sighs, “Well, you all came at a slightly unfortunate time, we were just about to have dinner.” She thinks for a moment, “Fleamont, what’s your opinion on what we should do?”

“Don’t look at me,” Mr. Potter deflects, “I have no idea.”

“Let’s do this, let’s get you boys’ stuff upstairs and we’ll figure dinner out after that,” Mrs. Potter decides, “We’ll get you more comfortable upstairs, too, Remus, alright.”

Remus nods, Sirius getting up to help him walk upstairs. Mr. Potter takes both of their trunks and follows after them. James grabs his own and heads upstairs, leaving only Regulus and Mrs. Potter in the living room.

“Sorry Regulus, I know we were just about to sit down,” She apologizes, walking over to the table, “I think we might have to order out instead, what do you think?”

Regulus just shrugs, he has no opinion on it.

“I’ll ask James and Sirius when they come back down,” She nods, looking up the stairs as James comes down, “James, what do you want for dinner?”

“I get to pick?” He asks, Mrs. Potter nodding. “You know what I’m going to pick.”

“I think I do.”

“We should get pizza, we don’t have it enough,” James smiles, Mrs. Potter nodding.

“I knew that was going to be your answer,” She sighs, “Go ask Remus and Sirius if that’s alright with that.”

James heads back up the stairs, Mrs. Potter looking to Regulus.

“Do you have any argument?”

He shakes his head.

“Perfect, I’m sure neither of them will either,” She says as James and Mr. Potter head back down the stairs, Mr. Potter heading off into his room. “No opposition?”

James happily shakes his head, “I think I win.”

“You do win,” She laughs, “I’ll do that, we won’t have dinner at the table tonight, though.”

“That’s fine, we’ll overload you with stories tomorrow,” James replies, “We have a lot of good ones.”

“I’m sure you do, Regulus was telling me about it,” She answers, starting to clear off the table.

“What did you tell her, Reg?” James asks. 

“Only a little of what you involved me in,” Regulus answers.

“Oh, yeah, that makes sense,” James nods, looking back as Sirius comes down the stairs and heads into the kitchen.

“Hello Sirius,” Mrs. Potter greets, “Do you need anything?”

“Yeah, Remus just asked for water, I’m grabbing it for him,” He tells her as he pulls a glass out and starts to fill it.

“Alright, tell him if there’s anything he needs he’s welcome to ask, alright?” She says, Sirius nodding.

“I will, thank you,” He replies before heading back upstairs. James follows up after him, Mrs. Potter turning back to Regulus.

“Oh, I totally forgot to tell you, Regulus,” She starts, “You have an eye doctor appointment tomorrow, at 10, I’m bringing you to the same practice I have James go, they’re very good there.”

Regulus nods, although he’s not really looking forward to that. He  _ hates _ any kind of doctor or healer visit, they never seem to end well with him.

“Don’t worry, you’ll be fine dear,” She smiles at him, “And they’ll likely prescribe you glasses, they’re a magic practice so you’ll have them the next day.”

He nods again, the idea of glasses is a little out of his comfort zone, but the idea of not being able to see anything is more so. It’ll be interesting to explain, though.

“You’re welcome to go back to what you were doing before,” She tells him, “I’m just cleaning up, I’ll call you out when we get the food.”

“Thank you,” He says before heading back off into the piano room. He does revel in the feeling of someone caring enough to not only notice he was having a problem but then help  _ fix _ it. It’s a sharp contrast to having pink eye for at least two weeks as a kid before anyone cared to treat it. 

It’s nice to feel cared about.

***

“How are you feeling, Moony?” James asks, fiddling with the ring on his finger. 

“Better,” Remus replies, “A little sore, but definitely better than this morning.”

“That’s good, that’s good,” James nods. 

“Can I ask you both something?” Remus starts, both Sirius, sitting in front of him, and James nodding, “Is there anything I should know, living here for all of break? I feel like you all have some interesting dynamics in this house that I don’t get coming over for a couple of days at a time.”

“There probably is,” Sirius nods, “I mean, there’s Regulus’ horrible sleeping patterns, but you’ve already been a victim to those.”

“And Mum always makes us have breakfast unless there’s some other circumstance, but you also know that too,” James chimes in.

“Oh shit, James,” Sirius looks over at him, “Are we seeing your family over break?”

“Oh, you get to meet my family!” James smiles, “That’s so fun, they normally come over here for Easter, we’ll get even  _ more _ babysitting backup.”

“Oh no, your family has a lot of kids,” Remus groans, “Kids do not like me, this won’t be fun.”

“It’ll be fine,” James assures him, “The kids in my family just like when there are people to play with them, not to mention me and Haydn keep them contained. Oh! You get to meet Haydn, I think you and him will get along, right Pads?”

“Yeah, Haydn is cool,” Sirius nods, “He’s a lot like you, you two will get along.”

“Ok, I have one person I’ll potentially get along with,” Remus nods, “Anyone else you can assure me won’t hate me?”

“The kids will like you,” Sirius replies, “Like James said, they don’t even care who you are, they’ll just scream at you in French until you play house with them or something.”

“Oh god, they speak  _ French _ ?” Remus questions, “All of them?”

“Pretty much, other than me, of course,” James answers, “Do you want a full rundown?”

“I’m not doing anything else, walk me through it,” Remus prompts. 

“Ok, so I have,” James counts them up, “7 Aunts and Uncles in total. There’s Aunt Esmé and Uncle Sean, who have two kids, Percy and Rosetta. Percy and his wife Diane have 4 kids, 3-year-old triplets and an 8-year-old daughter. Rosetta and her wife Veva just travel a lot, they don’t have kids.”

“The two of them are also very cool,” Sirius chimes in, “They’re the same kind of cousins to James that Andromeda is to me.”

“Yeah, yeah,” James agrees, continuing to list, “Then there’s Uncle Lionel and Aunt Maria, they have two daughters but you’ll probably only meet Lethia.”

“She’s the one who is friends with Narcissa,” Sirius adds.

“Mhm, and then there’s Uncle Lionel and his three girls, 11, 9, and 5,” He continues, “His 5-year-old, Embla, is the only one you should fear, but  _ I’m  _ scared of her and I remember meeting her when she was a baby. She’s  _ insane _ . And then there’s Uncle Léo and Aunt Fiona, and they have Haydn, who is our age, Timotheé who is 13, and Dianna who is 6 now. They normally come over the day before and stay over but I don’t think that’s happening this year because there is literally no room in this house.”

“There wasn’t any room in this house  _ last _ time either,” Sirius points out, “We slept in the same bed and Reg slept in mine, and then when Rosetta and Veva stayed over we were all in one room.”

“Yeah, I mean, Mum probably could fit us, but she wouldn’t,” James says, “I was writing her about it, she said they’ll just come over early like we did to them on Christmas Eve.”

“James,” Remus stops him, “I have to meet  _ all  _ these people at once?”

“Yes,” James laughs, “You’ll be fine! In all honesty, there’s a good likelihood you’ll meet Haydn before then, Reg said he came over yesterday and he’ll be over again I’m sure.”

“When he came over the last time I wasn’t here, was I?” Sirius asks, James shaking his head.

“No, it was just me and Reg. I remember because they were bonding after Aunt Fiona came over and went crazy on him, she’s a little insane,” James recalls.

“She was a Carrow, I remember her telling me that,” Sirius adds, “I told Andromeda you were related to her and Andromeda told me she remembers her  _ and _ she remembers her marrying the Fawley. She told me she was watching me at the time, small world.”

“Reg was telling me at some point that Narcissa said she remembers hearing about it too when she was watching him,” James chimes in, “I didn’t know my Aunt made such an impact on your family.”

“Pureblood gossip is huge, you remember everything,” Sirius replies, “She’s got a little bit of pureblood in her still, the way she was yelling at Haydn on Christmas Eve last time was painfully familiar.”

“Yeah, she’s really strict, and it’s more so with Haydn than Tim and Dianna, it’s weird,” James nods, “But don’t worry about her, Moony, she’s nice to everyone else.”

“I just can’t believe how many people I’m meeting at once,” Remus sighs, “It’s not even bad, you just already know all of them.”

“You’ll be fine, Reg was marginally ok and you’re way more social than is,” Sirius reassures him, “I wouldn’t worry about it.”

“It’ll certainly be interesting,” Remus laughs, “Now come here, I’m tired.”

“I don’t want to hurt you,” Sirius says, “Move, lay on me instead.”

Remus moves forward, although slowly, as Sirius gets up. Sirius pulls the covers down and lays down, Remus going under the covers to lay with his back on Sirius. He presses a kiss to his head and grabs his hand, rubbing it lightly with his thumb. He pulls the covers up so the two of them are comfortable, Remus cuddling into him. 

“Mmm,” Remus drones, “You’re hands are warm.”

“Your hands are freezing, good nothing has changed,” Sirius softly laughs.

Someone knocks on the door, it opening a moment later. Mrs. Potter pokes her head in, “Hello boys.”

“Hi Mum!” James greets.

“I just wanted to let you all know that you’ll be home alone for a little while tomorrow, I forgot to tell you that I’m taking Regulus to an eye doctor appointment tomorrow at 10,” She tells them.

“Oh good, Reg is  _ finally  _ getting his eyes fixed,” Sirius sighs, “Did he tell you?”

“Well, I made him tell me,” She says, walking in the room and shutting the door, “I noticed when he was trying to read a letter from Andromeda, he said it got worse when he had the concussion and it never got better.”

“It got worse?” Sirius questions, “It was bad when we were kids, my God he’s impossible, he got that concussion almost two months ago.”

“It’s definitely concerning, but we’re getting it fixed, no worries,” She smiles, opening the door again, “That’s all I needed, goodnight, boys.”

“Goodnight Mum!” James waves.

“And don’t make too much noise, Regulus just went to bed.”

“He’s not falling asleep,” Sirius shakes his head.

“Well if he does fall asleep, don’t wake him up,” She replies, all of them nodding. She shuts the door and heads back downstairs, Remus licking both his fingers and pinching the candle next to them, putting it out and plunging their side of the room into darkness. 

“I’m tired, so I’ve decided we’re going to bed,” Remus tells them, “Goodnight Pads, goodnight Prongs.”

“Goodnight Moony,” James replies, turning the light off next to him. Sirius presses a kiss to Remus’ head again before whispering.

“Goodnight, love.”


	93. Crystal Clear

Today has certainly been interesting. 

Regulus didn’t expect this visit to be easy, which was a good expectation to have. They ended up having a 20-minute discussion about the fact that she isn’t his legal guardian when they got here, thank God for wizarding guardianship carelessness because he’d rather not get returned to his mother. They tried to insist that Mrs. Potter couldn’t sign off on anything for him, but she apparently knew the law better than they did. Regulus still isn’t quite sure how that all worked out, but she told him not to worry about it.

They, first of all, had to dilate his eyes, telling him what he already knew: His eyes are pretty damaged. He’s also more blind than he thought he was, doing pretty miserably at a lot of the tests they put him through. Especially the one where they had him read the sentences off of that sheet, he couldn’t make out a single word of it. A little embarrassing, but hopefully they’ll be able to  _ remedy _ that knowing it’s an issue. He didn’t really listen to the doctor when she was telling them about what all the numbers meant.

The door opens again, the doctor walking back in, holding out a piece of paper to Mrs. Potter, “Here is all you need, you’ve been here before, you know we have an optical here. Do you guys have any questions?”

Mrs. Potter shakes her head, “I think we’re good, thank you so much.”

“Of course,” The doctor smiles, “I know you likely will anyway, but I would recommend out optical, our turnaround time is really fast and that vision issue is pretty bad.”

“We will,” She nods, “That’s probably what we’re about to do.”

“Perfect,” She smiles, opening the door and moving to let them out, “It was nice seeing you again.”

“You as well, Mrs. Potter gets up, Regulus following after her out the door and to the front desk. He awkwardly stands beside her as she makes an appointment for a year from now, which seems a little weird. He can’t even picture a year from now, let alone plan anything for it. 

She puts a hand on his shoulder and starts to guide him towards the optical shop. “You’re going to have to pick out frames,” She says, “Any ideas?”

He shrugs, he knows nothing about glasses.

“That’s fine, I was in here with James for an hour when he first got glasses,” She laughs, “I think he picked up every single pair, only to go with wire circular ones. He’s had the same ones ever since, though, so I guess it was worth it.”

Regulus nods, pushing open the glass door in front of them and walking into the next room. There are portions of every wall filled with glasses frames, the wall to the left of him filled almost entirely. There’s a counter and 3 tables further into the room, a couple of people sitting on either side of two of them. Someone almost immediately walks up to them. 

“Hello,” She greets, “Did you come from next door?”

“We did,” Mrs. Potter responds.

“Do you need any help picking out frames?”

Mrs. Potter shakes her head, “No, we’re fine, thank you.”

“Of course,” She smiles, “Just come and find me if you need anything fitted.”

Mrs. Potter nods again and the woman walks back off, Regulus still looking around aimlessly at the huge selection in front of him.

“It’s a little overwhelming, right?” Mrs. Potter rubs his shoulder. He nods. “It’s alright, we’ll pick one together, how about we start back there?” She points back at a wall in the back.

He shrugs, he’s not particularly biased, walking to the back corner of the room with her. It’s still a lot, but it’s less than picking through an entire room.

She starts by handing him pairs off of the wall, the two of them starting to pick through the all too many styles of glasses. He starts to rule out anything bold, which is way too much, anything really square, which doesn’t really look good on him, and anything too small, his vision isn’t good enough for that.

Mrs. Potter hands him another pair, “I think these might look nice.”

He puts them on, walking over to look in the small mirror on the wall. They have thin black frames, the glasses being big enough that he doesn’t really notice the edges looking out of them. They’re somewhere between an oval and a rectangle, the bottom corners rounded out and the top curved out just slightly. They’re not too much, not too little. 

Mrs. Potter walks up behind them, “Yeah, I like those, what do you think?”

He nods, “I like them.”

“Do you want to go with these?”

He nods again, looking back at her so he’s not looking through the mirror.

She smiles, “I really like those on you, let’s see if we can find someone to fit them.”

He takes them off, following after her up to the counter again, where she’s talking to someone. The woman who they talked to before leads them to one of the tables, Regulus sitting in the chair on their side and her sitting in the chair on the other one. Mrs. Potter pulls one up beside him. 

“Can I see the ones you picked?” The woman asks, Regulus handing over what’s in his hand. She starts talking to Mrs. Potter about something Regulus has no care to listen to. It was a nice adventure out of the house for about 10 minutes, but now he’s starting to just want to go back home. 

She hands the glasses back a minute later, “Can you put these on?” 

He puts them back on, and she leans over to do something to them. Regulus instinctively closes his eyes.

“Can you keep your eyes open for me?” She asks, Regulus reluctantly opening his eyes. He feels Mrs. Potter put a hand on his shoulder, and for the sake of keeping himself grounded totally tunes out of the conversation going on. 

Finally, she stops messing with them on his face and takes them off of him, finishing whatever adjustments she’s writing down next to her and gets up, gesturing for them to follow. They walk back up to the counter, Regulus continuing to ignore them talking until Mrs. Potter turns to him. She finally asks what he’s been waiting for.

“Ready to go back home?” 

***

After decompressing for a day, and telling James every detail of what happened, Regulus is  _ back _ at the damn optical place. At least he’s getting the glasses this time, so he’ll reluctantly be almost happy about it. 

They walk back up to the counter again, a different man there this time. He gets Regulus’ name from Mrs. Potter before disappearing into the back, coming out a minute later holding seemingly the same glasses from yesterday, although this time Regulus knows they’re made for him.

The man hands them to him, “Try these on, see if they fit right.”

Regulus tilts his head down to put them on, looking up to a world that seems crystal clear. He looks around in awe for a moment, looking over to Mrs. Potter and failing at fighting a smile at how clear everything finally is.

“Do they fit right dear? Nothing is too tight?” She asks, Regulus shaking his head. “Everything looks ok?”

He assuredly nods, looking back to the man who handed him the glasses.

“If nothing feels tight or needs adjusting you should be all set,” He says, looking between the two of them. 

Mrs. Potter looks at Regulus, “You’re sure everything feels fine?” 

He nods again, they really do fit right.

“Wonderful,” Sh he looks back to the man on the other side of the counter, “Thank you so much.”

“Of course, have a nice day,” He smiles, Regulus following her back out of the building. He walks outside and immediately looks around to take everything in, details he really hasn’t seen for a while. He never realized  _ how _ bad his vision was, it was so normal for him.

Mrs. Potter laughs, “Things are much clearer now, huh?”

“Mhm,” He nods, still looking around at how sharp everything is.

“I told you it would be worth it,” She rubs his shoulder, “Let’s get home, you can try them out on the piano, how about that?”

He nods again, walking off to the side and closing his eyes as they apparate home. He looks up as Mrs. Potter walks up and unlocks the door, Regulus following her inside. He barely gets the door shut behind him before James comes barreling down the stairs.

“Hi!” He waves, pointing between Regulus and himself, “We’re like twins!” 

Regulus just laughs at him, watching as Sirius and Remus come down behind him, much calmer than James. 

“Look who finally got glasses,” Sirius laughs, “It’s about time.”

“You’re telling me,” Regulus deadpans, walking further into the house and continuing to look around. The faces in the photos on the wall are detailed, the small engravings on some of the frames completely legible to him. He just wants to walk up to and look at everything all at once.

“I know that feeling,” James comments, “Seeing everything clearly? I would  _ pay _ to relive that, I’m jealous of you right now Reg.”

“Oh, Regulus,” Mrs. Potter calls from the kitchen, “You got a letter, how appropriate.”

Regulus walks over and takes it from her, knowing there’s only one person who writes his name so fancy. He opens it, not even reading it at first, instead staring at how he can see every detail of Cynthia’s clean-cut handwriting. It takes him a moment to process the fact that the letters make words before he starts to read them.

_ Hey Reggie! _

_ It’s only been a couple of days but I already miss you tons. My parents are taking my sister overnight somewhere in France on Monday next week, I’m not totally sure what they’re doing but it’ll just be me and Cain home. He said I have permission to go over and visit, as long as you’re not doing anything and it’s alright with everyone there. I would ask to stay overnight, but I don’t want to take that risk coming home.  _

_ You know the drill, don’t do anything that will cause my parents to ask where the letter came from. They’re already on edge as it is, especially my mum, so I’m trying my hardest to get out of the house.  _

_ Hopefully I’ll see you soon! _

_ ~ Cynthia _

He feels like  _ crying _ at how easy reading that was, not to mention he’ll probably get to see Cynthia again. He looks over at Mrs. Potter, who is putting dishes away.

“Who was it?” She asks, turning so she’s facing him.

“Cynthia,” He replies, “She asked if she could come over Monday.”

“Same situation as last time?” She questions, Regulus nodding. “It’s completely alright with me, we’re not doing anything.”

“Thank you,” He smiles, her walking over and giving him a kiss on the head before heading down the hallway closer to the door. Regulus revels in the smiley feeling today is gifting him with and heads upstairs, noting that James, Remus, and Sirius are all back in their room already. Regulus goes into his, writing Cynthia a letter back. He doesn’t mention the glasses, he wants to surprise her with that one. 

He heads back downstairs and hands the letter to the owl, no longer seeing just a whitish blur flying out the window. He knows exactly what he wants to do next, heading right into the piano room and pulling out the one book he got for Christmas that he didn’t work on until after he got his concussion. It’s almost magical, not having to squint to see any of the notes. Staccato markings don’t blend into the page, the ink on the notes is sharp, the staff lines are so clear. 

He doesn’t even care how well he’s playing, he’s busy looking at the details of a page he never got to see before. He’s beaming so much his face hurts. He finally really gets to enjoy playing again, instead of having to strain his eyes every time he forgets what comes next.

Regulus plays for about 10 minutes before the door opens, Regulus looking back to see James peeking into the room. 

“Hi Reg!” James greets, walking in and sitting down next to him on the bench, “What’re you playing?”

“The book from Christmas,” He answers, “The one I’ve never seen clearly before.”

“Isn’t it so cool? You get to see everything in like, the way everyone else does.” 

Regulus nods, still busy with wowing himself on how well he can make out notes without squinting.

“You know what we have to do?” James starts, “We have to play around with the Snitch, you’re going to be so good now.”

“I’ll do it a little later,” Regulus answers, “Once I finish this.”

“Totally, no rush,” James assures him, both of them looking back when the door creaks open again. Sirius walks in, smiling at Regulus.

“Glasses look good on you,” He comments, ruffling his hair and taking a seat on the ground, “Everything fits alright?”

“Mhm,” Regulus affirms.

“Good, I’m glad you can finally see, shit, it’s been years,” Sirius laughs, “It’s a big fuck you to mum too, I’m all for it.”

“I’m all for it because I can see,” Regulus replies, “But I guess that’s a bonus.”

“Damn right it is,” Sirius agrees, “How bad were all the tests they made you do? I didn’t get to ask yesterday.”

“Not my favorite,” Regulus answers, “A lot of shaking my head at them because I didn’t know what things said.”

“Well, now you do, how cool is that?” Sirius smiles, “I’m happy for you to finally have goddamn glasses, is this how you’ve just always lived, James?”

“Yeah, this is what I’m saying when I tell you the fact that you  _ never _ see doctors is so weird to me,” James points out.

“The last time my mum brought me to the doctors other than for normal shots or whatever was,” Sirius thinks about it for a concerningly long time, “When I was 11, I needed that paper to prove that I wasn’t ill so I could go to Hogwarts.”

“I think that was the last time I went too,” Regulus agrees, “When I was 10.”

“What the fuck?” James shakes his head, “I couldn’t  _ imagine _ , Mum is crazy about that.”

Another person appears in the doorway, Regulus looking up to see Remus looking around at all of them.

“What am I missing in here?” He asks, slightly confused.

“You’re not missing anything, just Reg and Sirius unearthing how horrible their mother is,” James answers, “Miss us already?”

“Yeah, well you abandoned me and our game, I think I have a right,” Remus laughs.

Sirius spins around and holds his hands up, Remus helping him off the ground, although Regulus could tell Sirius was really pulling most of his own weight. He turns back to James, “Come on, leave Reg be and let me crush you again.”

“Oh no you won’t,” James warns, getting up, “I’m gonna beat you this time.”

“Not a chance.”

James turns back to Regulus, “I’ll come back down in a little while to annoy you again, if you want to go out just come grab me, I’m all in.”

Regulus nods, watching as they all walk back out of the room. Regulus turns back to his music, flipping the page to one he’s never touched before. He sight-reads the whole thing, sitting right where he is, not leaning back or squinting or taking the book off the piano. It feels  _ so _ good.

He’s never been so excited to do such mundane things before.


	94. We'll Have Fun!

Regulus walks up to Andromeda’s front door, knocking on it. He hears a lot less frantic movement coming from inside than he has the last few times he’s come to babysit, Andromeda opening the door.

“Hi-” She cuts herself off, staring at him confused. Regulus just laughs, intentionally not having told her about the glasses. “When the f- did you get those? What?!”

“Yesterday,” He answers.

“Ok, come in, fill me in on that,” She gestures for him to come inside, stepping aside so he can come in the house. He walks in and heads upstairs, Andromeda shutting the door behind him. She ushers him off into the living room, Regulus sitting down as Andromeda sits next to him, “So why didn’t I know you were getting glasses? Or that you even  _ needed _ them?”

“You knew I needed them,” He corrects her, “I’ve needed them since I was 7, remember?”

“Oh yeah, yeah yeah, you  _ never _ got that fixed?” She questions.

He shakes his head, “My mother barely got the pink eye fixed.”

“Ok, fair,” She nods, “But what brought it about? I’m assuming Mrs. Potter found out because there’s no way you told her.”

“You sent the letter, she saw I couldn’t really read it,” He answers, “Did I tell you I got a concussion, back in February?”

“You mentioned it, why?”

“Well, it messed up my vision, so I couldn’t see clearly after it, more so than before,” He tells her, “It was manageable when it was really just one eye, but that made it both.”

“You haven’t been able to see since then? How bad did it get?” She asks. 

“It’s really just bad up close,” Regulus says.

“Let me see those, I want to know how bad your eyes are,” She holds her hand out, Regulus taking his glasses off and handing them to her. She puts them on, only glancing around before taking them off and handing them right back, trying to regain her own sense of vision again. “Yeah, that’s not good, oh my God.”

Regulus laughs, looking up as he sees Ted come down the hallway, Nymphadora on his back, hanging onto his neck. 

“Hey Regulus,” He greets, pointing at him and furrowing his eyebrows, “You didn’t have those last time I saw you, right?”

He shakes his head, “I got them Thursday.”

“Oh, good, I thought I was going crazy for a moment,” He laughs, crouching down to let Nymphadora down onto the ground, who immediately runs over and climbs up onto the couch between him and Andromeda. She excitedly points at his face.

“Glasses!” She cheers, “Lemme see!”

“No, Dora, they’re for Reg,” Andromeda scolds, “Why don’t you put your sunglasses on? You’ll match.”

“Yeah!” She gets off the couch and runs into her room, Andromeda just shaking her head.

“Don’t be afraid to tell her no, she can’t touch your glasses, because she’s going to keep asking,” She tells him, “And, oh, a couple of things I should tell you before we leave. One, if you need anything at all, I think I told you this already, but Ms. Smith right next door is home all weekend, I made sure of it. If something happens and you need help, she’s very nice and totally willing to help. And don’t give me that face, if someone is dying you’re going to ask for help, right?”

“Yes, I will,” He assures her, “I promise.”

“Good, you better, I want to come back to the same number of kids with the same number of limbs that I left,” She playfully jeers, “You’re free to help yourself to anything in here, and when she tells you she wants dinner there’s a pizza in the oven that has a lingering heating charm on it. You also don’t need to put anything away, and you’re free to stay in either our room or out here on the couch, either one is totally fine. Oh, and it’s supposed to be pretty nice tomorrow, so I’m trusting you to take Dora down to the park literally 4 houses down that way,” She points out to his left. 

“We live in a really safe area, so there’s nothing to worry about if you do,” Ted chimes in, “She’ll also probably be thrilled, so if she’s dragging her feet tomorrow that might be a good option.”

Footsteps come sounding down the hallway, Nymphadora climbing back up on the couch, wearing a pair of red heart sunglasses.

“We match,” She giggles.

“We do,” He answers, “But I think yours are cooler.”

“Yeah, they are,” She answers, moving so she’s tucked under his arm. Regulus just laughs, looking back up to Andromeda. 

“Anything else?” He asks.

“Bedtime is at 8, it should be at 7 but that never works so anywhere around 8 is fine,” She answers, “At around 6:30 I would recommend starting to do something a little calmer, it’ll make everything easier. Make sure she brushes her teeth, gets in pajamas, all of that. You’ll probably have to read to her too, she’s pretty good with routine.” She looks back at Ted, “Anything I’m missing?”

“I don’t think so,” He shakes his head, “Other than where the bribery food is, does he know?”

“Oh no, come here, Reg,” She gets up, Regulus following. Nymphadora goes to follow but her dad picks her up before she can. He and Andromeda go into the kitchen, Andromeda opening the bottom cabinet next to the fridge. She pulls out a bag of candy, telling him in a hushed voice, “If she gets on your nerves, she’s very food motivated, just bribe her with this.”

Regulus nods, Andromeda putting it back tucked behind the other things in there before walking back into the other room.

“Are we all set to go?” She asks. Ted, who is tickling Nymphadora who at some point lost her sunglasses, looks over at her. 

“I think we are, just grab our bags from our room and we can be off,” He answers, Andromeda heading down the hallway. Ted looks back to Nymphadora, “Are you going to be good with Regulus?”

“Mhm,” She nods.

“Are you going to miss Mum and me?”

“Yeah,” She nods again.

“We’ll be back really soon, and you’ll have a lot of fun with Regulus,” He assures her, looking over as Andromeda comes back down the hallway with the things they need for staying overnight. It’s only a couple of bags, but it’s more than the one bag he brought. He doesn’t really need much.

Nymphadora reaches out for Andromeda, “Come here come here.”

Andromeda takes her, giving her a hug and saying goodbye. She sets Nymphadora down, urging her over to stand by Regulus. Andromeda smiles at him.

“Is there anything else you need before we leave?” She asks, “You’re all set?”

He nods, “We’ll be fine.”

“I trust you, I trust you,” She hands Ted one of the bags as she keeps talking, “We’ll see you at around 2 tomorrow, somewhere around there. We don’t want to leave you with her for too long.”

“Don’t worry about it,” He assures her, “Take your time, enjoy your night.”

“You’re our savior, Reg, thank you so much,” She looks over to Ted, “Ready to go?”

“Let’s roll,” He says, the two heading downstairs and towards the door. Ted looks back before they leave, “Thank you again, Regulus.”

He just smiles at them, waving as they walk out. Nymphadora yells her goodbyes out the door. It shuts behind them and Nymphadora turns around and looks up at him.

“Hi!” She greets, although he’s already been here for a while.

“Hi there,” He laughs.

“We’re gonna- We’re gonna, uh,” She stammers, “We’re gonna spend all day together?”

“Mhm” He nods, “And I’ll be here when you wake up.”

She jumps up and down, “Yay! We’ll have fun, come.” She grabs his hand and pulls him to the corner of the room, “We’re playing hide and seek, sit here and count, I’ll hide, ok?”

“Ok, I’ll count to 30 and you have to hide,” He tells her, sitting down so he’s facing the wall. He starts loudly counting up from 1, hearing her run off someone else down the hallway. He counts all the way up to 30 before yelling, “Ready or not, here I come!” 

He gets up, dropping his bag off on the couch before he walks down the hallway, starting by searching the bathroom first, then her room, and then going into her parent’s room. He looks around their room before going into their attached bathroom, hearing giggling coming from the cabinet under the sink. He opens it up, seeing Nymphadora sitting amongst some towels, laughing at him.

“You found me!” She cheers moving herself out of the cabinet, looking up at him when he stands up, “Your turn!”

“You want me to hide?” He asks, Nymphadora excitedly nodding. “No, why don’t you hide again?”

“No! You hide,” She demands, “I’ll go count.”

She runs off into the other room, leaving Regulus no choice but to find a hiding spot easy enough that a 3-year-old could find him. He shuts the cabinet door she came out of and goes into her room, sitting behind the curtain in a small empty spot in her closet. He hears footsteps start to patter down the hallway, and she checks her parent’s room before coming into hers. She looks around the room before walking over to the closet and pointing at him. 

“I found you!” She laughs, “Again!” 

Regulus gets up, “Again?”

“Yeah yeah!” She nods, pushing him out of the door, “I’ll hide.”

Regulus just sighs, heading back down the hallway and putting himself facing the corner again. He has a really bad feeling they're going to be playing this for a couple of hours. Although, it’s a pretty quiet game, so he’ll take it.

And he starts to count up to 30.

***

Finally, when Nymphadora gets found for the umpteenth time, she finally decides they’re done playing. 

“I’m hungry,” She tells him, “I don’t want to play, I’m hungry.”

“Ok, come on, let’s get something to eat,” He nods, heading down the hallway into the kitchen. She follows after him, grabbing a seat at the table in the corner. He opens the oven, taking out the pizza Andromeda told him was in there. He sets it out on the counter and opens every cabinet until he finds plates. He takes two out, putting a piece on each. He turns around to bring it back to the table but she stops him. 

“No no!” She shakes her head, “Cut it like Dad does!”

“What?” Regulus asks.

“Cut it,” She repeats, “Cut it.”

“Ok, ok cut it,” He nods, looking for a knife in the drawer to his left. He finds quite a few, taking out a small one and cutting the pizza into strips. He tries again, turning around and walking over to the table, placing both plates on the table. She reaches for it but he holds out his hand to stop her.

“No,” He shakes his head, “Wash your hands first.”

“No! I don’t want to!” She crosses her arms. 

“You can’t eat until you do,” He warns, “You’ll get sick.”

“No I won’t,” She argues.

He pulls the plate back, “So you can’t eat yet, not until you do. It’ll be so fast.”

“No!” She whines, “Give it back!” 

He sighs, “If you wash your hands you’ll get candy after you’re done with dinner.”

“Really?” She lights up, totally changing her tone. He nods and she nods. “Ok, I will. And you need to too.”

“I will, come on,” He has her follow him off into the bathroom in the hallway. She gets up on the stool and holds her hands out, Regulus giving her some soap. He rubs the soap into his hands, making sure she does the same. It bubbles up, and he brings his hand up flat and blows some bubbles onto her, which she finds absolutely hilarious.

She looks at her hands, which have no bubbles, “I want it too!” 

“Rub your hands together,” He instructs, showing her with his own hands. She does the same, making the same bubbles on her hand and blowing them at him. She, being 3, also gets soap all over his glasses. 

She giggles, “I got you!” 

“Yeah, you did,” He laughs, turning on the water, “Wash it off so we can eat.”

She washes the soap off of her hands, Regulus doing the same before drying his hands off and taking his glasses off to clean those too. Nymphadora has already gone back into the kitchen, Regulus walking in to see her starting to eat her food. She moves over and Regulus takes the seat beside her, starting on his own piece. 

They eat in quiet for about 4 seconds before Nymphadora goes to talk.

“When do-”

“Not with your mouthful, chew first,” He scolds, Nymphadora finishing her food before starting again. 

“When do you go back?” She questions.

“Next week, on Sunday,” He responds, “It’s far away.”

“Oh, ok,” She nods, “When do you come home?”

“Not until summer,” He answers, “It’ll be fast, you won’t feel it.”

“I want to see your friend again.”

“Cynthia,” He reminds her, “And I don’t know if you’ll get to see her. I only get to see her at school a lot.”

“Aww,” She frowns, “I like her.”

Regulus laughs, “I like her too.”

“Do you have more friends? I want to meet them too!”

Regulus dodges the question by pointing at her plate, “Eat more, we’ll talk after.”

She nods, going back to eating her pizza. Regulus finishes his piece, not really feeling like having another. Nymphadora, however, is not done.

She holds up her plate to him, “More?” 

“Yeah, here, I’ll get you more,” He gets up and puts another piece on her plate, cutting it up the same and handing it back. He takes his own plate and washes it off, leaving it in the sink because he has no faith in himself to put things back right. 

He remembers he totally forgot to get her anything to drink, looking over to her, “Dora, what do you want to drink?”

“Juice! Please please please?” She begs, “In the red cup!” 

Regulus goes into the cabinet he saw the cups in and finds a red cup, notably with no lid. Although he knows nothing about kids, he certainly doesn’t trust her. 

“This?” He asks, turning back. She nods. “No lid?”

“No! I’m a big girl,” She tells him, “Red juice, in there.” She points at the fridge.

Regulus goes in the fridge and sees a jug of some red liquid, Regulus pulling it out much to her excitement. He looks at the label, seeing it’s some kind of juice he’s never heard of before, probably muggle, and he pours it into the cup. He only does it a little more than halfway, it’s a big cup.

He hands her the cup, “What do you say?”

“Thank you!” She chirps, sipping on the juice in the cup. Regulus grabs a glass cup for himself, filling it with water and leaning against the counter as he sips on it, making sure she doesn’t do anything that might cause that to spill. 

She finally finishes, getting off of the bench and walking over to him, “Candy!” She demands. 

Regulus laughs, “I’ll give you some, go into the living room first, I’ll be right in.”

“Animals?” She asks, Regulus looking over to the clock. It’s only 5:30, so he should be alright to let her play for a little while.

“Alright, let me clean up, you get it set up,” He concedes, her face lighting up as she runs off to get everything out. Regulus cleans off her plate and puts both it and the cup in the sink before grabbing a piece of candy and walking into the living room, Nymphadora smiling up at him from the ground. She holds out a toy.

“Gimmie! You can be the tiger!” 


	95. 'Where the Wild Things Are'

Regulus ended up letting her play for longer than he planned to, and about half an hour ago she moved to sit in his lap while he plays with the toys. He can feel her dozing off, and a glance at the clock tells him it’s about 7:30, which is late enough for him to get her ready for bed.

He tries method one, not telling her what he’s doing in hopes she’s fully asleep. Although that fails the second he puts the toys down.

“Nooooo!” She listlessly whines, “Keep going!”

“It’s bedtime, Dora.”

“No it’s not!” She shakes her head, “Not bedtime!”

“Yeah, it is,” He presses, going to turn her around so he can pick her up, which goes horrible because she just starts to kick aimlessly.

“No! No!” She cries, her hair shifting to orange, “More!” 

He pauses for a second, trying to plan out how he’s going to calm her down and get her to at least marginally agree to go to bed.  _ He’s _ not that tired, but  _ she _ is.

He decides to put his foot down, “Come on, let’s get ready.”

“No bed!” She shakes her head again.

“We’ll play more tomorrow,” He promises her, “But only if you go to bed now.”

She throws herself onto the floor as she sobs, Regulus sighing at how  _ dramatic _ she can be. He gets up and lets her cry for a little while, cleaning up all the toys around her. Eventually, she stops scream sobbing in favor of just crying, sitting up and crossing her arms at him. 

“Are you ready now-”

“No!” She yells back before yelling something completely incomprehensible.

“It’s all cleaned up,” He points out, “It’s time for bed.”

She cries even harder, yelling more of nothing at him. Regulus takes a deep breath before trying again.

“Do you want to brush your teeth first or get changed?”

“Nothing,” She forces through sobs, “Nothing!” 

“You have to pick,” He presses.

She just shakes her head and continues to cry, her hair going almost red, a color he’s never seen before. Regulus starts to worry, she’s struggling to catch her breath through how worked up she’s getting. He sits down in front of her.

“Can I see your hands?” He asks, holding his hands out. She shakes her head, but he just tries again. “No, it’ll be fun, can I see them?”

She gives him her hands for a moment before pulling them away, “No no, I don’t like it!”

“Ok, ok,” He nods, abandoning that plan because he knows what that feels like. He decides to do what  _ he _ normally does is his only option, he has no idea how else to help. “Dora, look around for me, what’s something you see?”

“I- I- I see,” She looks around, still loudly sobbing, “You.”

“Yeah, you do see me,” He nods, “What else?”

“I- I see,” She forces out, “Couch.”

“What color is the couch?”

“Brown,” She answers.

“You’re doing so good,” He congratulates, “Can you tell me another thing you see.”

She looks around, “Books.”

“There’s a lot of books,” He nods, “What’s your favorite?”

“Where- Where-” She tries to catch her breath, “Where the Wild Things Are.”

“I like that book too, do you want to read it before bed?”

“Yeah,” She nods, starting to smile. 

“Do you want to tell me something else you see?” He prompts, thankful that his questions are working. 

“I see your glasses,” She points at him. 

He takes them off, feeling really bad that he worked her up so much, “Want to try them on?”

She gasps, “Yeah!”

He hands them to her, “Be very very careful.”

She takes them with both her hands, putting them on her face and giggling, tears still falling down her face. She’s grinning, though, “I’m Reglus!”

“You’re me, that’s right,” He laughs, “Does it look funny?”

“Yeah,” She points around, “It looks weird!”

“They help me see right,” He tells her, holding his hand out as she hands them back, “So I can see like you do.”

“You can’t see?” She asks, wiping her face. 

“Everything for me is blurry,” He explains as he puts his glasses back on, “Glasses help me see clearly.”

“That’s good,” She smiles, “Yeah, that’s good.”

“It’s very good,” He agrees, “Now, can you get dressed for bed by yourself?” 

“Yeah, I’m a big girl!” She tells him.

“How about you show me how good you are and go get dressed in some pajamas and we’ll read Where the Wild Things Are?” He offers, “Does that sound ok?”

“Mhm,” She nods, “I like that.”

“Ok, come and get me if you need help, ok?” 

“I don’t need help,” She assures him, getting up and heading off into her room. Regulus sighs with the relief of finally getting her to willingly go off to bed, getting up and going in his own bag, pulling out what he brought to wear tonight. He heads into the bathroom and changes out of what he’s wearing into something more comfortable. He barely gets half of it on before he hears a knock on the door. 

“I need help!” Nymphadora calls, “I can’t do it.”

“I’ll help in a second,” He replies, pulling his shirt on and opening the door, seeing her half-dressed, her shirt all unbuttoned. He crouches down and buttons it up for her, leaving the top couple undone. He pats the buttons when he’s done, “There you go.”

“Yay!” She grabs his hand, “We’re reading now.”

“Hold on hold on, you get in bed and I’ll grab the book,” He pauses, “Wait, brush your teeth first, come in here.”

“No I don’t need to,” She shakes her head. Regulus is careful  _ not _ to cause another meltdown.

“What if we did it together?”

“Nooo,” She whines.

“Dora,” He warns, fighting off the part of him that almost wants to resort to a threat, he reminds himself that just because he was raised like that doesn’t make it good. “I know you don’t want to, but we have to, I will too.”

She frowns but concedes, “Ok, I will.”

Regulus silently sighs with relief, “Good job, I’ll be in to help in a second.”

He grabs the clothes he was wearing and walks back off into the living room, putting them back in his bag and taking out what he needs, heading back into the bathroom to see her standing on her stool waiting for him with her toothbrush in her hand.

“Where’s your toothpaste?” He asks, her going in one of the cups and handing him it. He takes her toothbrush and puts a little on, wetting it before handing it back to her. He starts to brush his own teeth, watching her do the same, just much more poorly. Is he supposed to help? Andromeda didn’t mention him needing to help, but she doesn’t seem to actually be brushing anything.

He finishes and rinses his mouth out, putting everything back before looking at her. 

“Does your Mum help you when you brush your teeth?” He asks, and she nods.

“She does it after,” She tells him, spitting toothpaste everywhere.

Oh great. 

“Ok, ok,” He holds his hand out, “Can I have that? I’m going to help like she does.”

She hands the toothbrush to him, opening her mouth so he can do it for her. He’s going to yell at Andromeda for not mentioning that, he doesn’t  _ care _ , he would have just liked a warning.

He figures he did a good enough job, considering she kept shutting her mouth  _ on _ the brush, rinsing it off and grabbing the empty cup with the ‘For Water’ label on it, presumably meaning she can rinse with that. He fills it up a little and hands it to her. She knows what to do, sipping it and swishing it around before spitting it back out. 

“Good job,” He smiles, “We’re all done.”

“All done!” She cheers, “We can read now?”

“Mhm, go into your room, I’ll get the book.”

She practically jumps off the stool and runs into her room, Regulus leaving everything he brought into the bathroom in there, he’ll need it in the morning anyway. He heads into the living room and scans through the books, pulling out Where the Wild Thing Are and heading back into her room. 

She’s got the covers pulled up to her neck and is beaming at him excitedly. He has to admit, she’s kind of adorable.

He kneels down next to her bed and opens up the book, reading aloud the title with the most animated voice he has, “Where the Wild Things Are.”

“Let me see the picture,” She tells him, Regulus moving so he’s holding the book out in front of the two of them before continuing.

“The night Max wore his wolf suit and made mischief of one kind…”

***

Regulus drifts awake in a room he doesn’t recognize at first, taking a moment to look around before realizing he’s on Andromeda’s couch, curled up under one of the blankets that were stacked at the end of the sectional. The house is still quiet, the clock on the wall reading 9 o’clock. Odd, he’s surprised Nymphadora hasn’t shaken him awake already. 

He sits up and stretches, noting that he should probably make something for breakfast. He hears something from the landing, sounding oddly like the mail slot, although it’s a little early for the post in this area. He gets up and heads down onto the landing, picking up the letter on the ground, addressed to him in who he thinks is Andromeda's handwriting. 

He heads back upstairs, and grabs a seat on the couch, opening up the letter to see 4 galleons and a small note. He grabs his glasses off the table before he starts reading. 

_ I’m hoping everything went alright last night, I’m sending this at around 6 so I’m just making a blind assumption that everyone is alive in the future. We decided maybe scavenging in our kitchen for breakfast isn’t very easy, so here are a few galleons to pay for something from the breakfast place down the street. I have absolutely no idea what it’s called, but it’s on the way to the park, you should see it.  _

_ Maybe have a picnic, who knows, just don’t get hurt. _

_ ~ Andromeda and Ted _

Regulus contemplates the offer for a moment, not sure if he wants to take her up on it. Order-out breakfast sounds nice, a picnic sound even nicer, but he’s not sure how he feels about going out and doing all of that. It’s a lot of talking to people, and a lot of doing that with a kid attached to him. 

But before he counts it out entirely, he goes into the kitchen, looking through the cabinets for what he could possibly eat for breakfast. He cannot cook in the slightest, so anything that requires preparation is off of the table. He’s not really in the mood for cereal or any of the weird kids’ stuff they have either, it’s only been a week but he’s gotten so used to Mrs. Potter cooking breakfast that he’s actually hungry when he wakes up.

He decides he’ll reassess what he wants to do when Nymphadora wakes up, going back to lay down on the couch and pull out the book he was reading last night. 

He gets another 45 minutes before he hears the door down the hall creak open and heavy footsteps come down the hallway, Nymphadora appearing from down the hall and smiling at him. 

“Good morning Dora,” He greets, sitting up, “Did you sleep well?”

“Mhm,” She nods, getting on the couch and looking at the coffee table where Regulus put the letter, “What’s that?”

“It’s a letter from you Mum,” He tells her, “She said we can get breakfast and have a picnic at the park, how does that sound?”

She beams up at him and earnestly nods, “Yeah!”

“Do you want to go now or later?” He asks.

“Now now!” She bounces up and down on the couch, “Go now! I’m hungry!”

“Ok ok,” He laughs, “We have to get dressed, do you need help?”

“No no, it’s ok,” She gets off the couch and goes back into her room, Regulus getting up and grabbing his own clothes he brought for today. He goes into the bathroom and changes into the only clean outfit he had, made up of what he almost considers dress pants and the button-up with the puffy sleeves Cynthia likes. He’s not even sure when she told him she liked it, he just immediately associates it with her. 

He opens back up the door happy to not see Nymphadora, putting his clothes back before peeking into her room. She has her drawer open but hasn’t even started getting dressed yet. 

She looks at him, “Can you help?”

“Yeah, I’ll help, what are you wearing?” He asks, picking up the pile of clothes she’s pointing at. Of course, Andromeda has everything organized by outfit, that’s 100% her.

He takes it out and lays out each piece on her bed, which is really just a yellow and white striped shirt and overalls, that  _ should  _ be easy enough to put on her. He hands her the shirt, “Can you put this on?”

She shakes her head, pointing at her shirt she has on, “You need to help.”

“Ok, I can help,” He nods, crouching down and unbuttoning everything. He helps her get the shirt on, since it’s a little tight, before helping her out of her pajama pants and into the overalls, clipping them on her. He notes the seams on the pant legs, meaning Andromeda has tailored them for her. 

“Sit down, Dora, let me put your socks on,” He instructs, opening drawers until he finds socks. He takes them out and puts them on for her, surprised she’s just sitting patiently. The second he’s done, though, she’s down the hallway. 

He follows out after her, watching in amusement as she excitedly jumps as she waits for him. She stops, “Wait!” 

She runs off down the hall, rummaging around for something before running back, now wearing the pair of red heart sunglasses from yesterday.

“We’re ready!” She tells him.

He laughs, “You look very cool.”

She giggles and goes down the stairs, letting him help her put her shoes on. He cracks open the door, feeling the cold April air outside and deciding to put her in a jacket. She pretty much does it herself, though, pulling on a red jacket with polka dots on it and button it up herself. 

“Stay there,” He tells her, heading upstairs and grabbing his wand, knowing he legally can’t use it but just feeling more secure with it in his pocket. He also throws what he’s almost positive is a picnic blanket, or at least close to one, over his shoulder and pocketing the galleons Andromeda sent him before going back on the landing. 

He slips his own shoes on, grabbing the keys off the hook and looking down at her smiling face.

“Ready to get something to eat?”


	96. Doggie!

“Here! Here!” Nymphadora runs a couple of feet away and points at a clear spot on the grass, “Put it here.”

“You want to eat here?” Regulus clarifies, Nymphadora nodding. Regulus takes the blanket off his shoulder and sets the bag of food down, spreading out the surprisingly large blanket. Nymphadora jumps into sitting down on top of it, Regulus sitting down in front of her. He takes out the two to-go containers, both with pancakes in them because she told him that he had to get them too, and he really didn’t want to fight that. He also doesn’t hate pancakes, so he’s not really mad about it. 

He opens both of them, identifying the one with strawberries in it as hers, looking up, “Dora, do you want me to cut it?”

“Yeah,” She nods, Regulus taking out the plastic knife and cutting it into pieces for her. 

“Do you want anything on it? Syrup to dip it in?”

“No, it’s good,” She assures him, taking the box and starting to eat it with her hands. She didn’t really touch anything, and they’re in the middle of the park, she should be alright. He also sets the small cup of orange juice she got, thankfully with a lid, on top of the lid of the box

He starts to eat his too, which is surprisingly good. Nymphadora is generally quiet, Regulus just enjoying the oddly nice morning this morning. It’s a little cold, but pretty nice considering how cold it has been. The park is generally empty too, with the exception of a couple of people going on runs or walking their dogs. He tries to keep a good awareness of what’s around him, not because he feels  _ that _ unsafe, but because it’s not just him, he’s watching Nymphadora too.

He looks over as someone walks up, a very large, black fluffy dog trailing behind her. Regulus is immediately off-put until they introduce themselves.

“Hi, I’m sorry, this is kind of weird,” She laughs, “I’m Andrea Smith, I’m Andromeda and Ted’s neighbor.”

“Hi!” Nymphadora waves, getting up to give the dog, who is sitting down just behind her, a hug. The dog is taller than she is. 

“Are you Andromeda’s cousin?” She asks Regulus.

He nods, “I am, I’m Regulus.”

“It’s nice to meet you Regulus,” She smiles, looking back at Nymphadora still giving the very obedient dog a hug, “Are you saying hi to Spade?”

“Hi doggie,” She stands back and pets him, looking over to Regulus, “Reglus look!”

“I see,” Regulus nods, “Very cute.”

“I won’t interrupt your breakfast for too long, I just felt like I should introduce myself,” Ms. Smith says, “I’m sure Andromeda told you, but if you ever need anything when you’re watching her I’m always right next door.” 

“Miss miss!” Nymphadora walks up so she’s standing right in front of her.

“What?” She replies, rubbing Nymphadora’s head. 

“I have sunglasses,” She points at her face, “They’re cool!”

“They’re very cool,” Ms. Smith agrees, “Are you enjoying your breakfast outside?”

“Yeah!” She nods, “Reglus is with me.”

“He is,” She laughs, “Spade and I have to go back home, so how about you go finish your breakfast?”

“Aww, no, I want to stay with the doggie,” She runs back over and holds onto the dog.

“You’ll see him soon, but he’s tired, he just went for a walk,” Ms. Smith explains, “You should finish up your breakfast.”

She looks at Regulus as if he’s going to give her a different answer. 

“Say goodbye, you have a little bit more left to finish,” He points at her half unfinished last pancake. 

She sighs, “Ok, I’ll say goodbye.” She gives the dog a hug before sitting back down and waving to Ms. Smith, “Bye miss!”

“Bye Dora,” She looks back to Regulus, “It was nice meeting you, Regulus.”

“You as well,” He replies, watching as she walks back off down the path. Nymphadora goes to reach for her food again, but he stops her, “Wait a second, Dora.”

She looks up at him, Regulus uncapping the water he bought and walking over to her, holding out her hands and just rinsing them off. He goes back to where he was sitting, Nymphadora taking that as enough permission to continue eating. He just wasn’t a fan of her eating with the same hands she pet the dog with, it just felt off to him.

Another 10 minutes of waiting for her to finish, him already having finished his food. She periodically asks him about things she sees or random questions she thinks of but seems to be deadset on finishing that last pancake. 

Finally, she holds her hands up, “All done!” 

“Wow, you finished all of it,” He marvels, considering that was a lot of food. “Good job.”

“Yay!” She tries to put the lid back on, but she can’t quite figure out how it snaps. 

“Here, let me see it so we can throw it out,” He holds out his hand, her handing him the container. He puts it in the bag and gets up, Nymphadora standing up too. He sloppily folds back up the blanket they were sitting on, throwing it back over his shoulder and grabbing the bag in one hand, holding out the other for her to hold onto. 

“We’re going home?” She asks, looking up at him.

“Mhm, we’re going back, your Mum and Dad will be back soon,” He tells her, although that’s not necessarily true. It’s only about 11. 

“No, but I want to play!” She whines, “Play with me!”

“We can play at home,” He replies, throwing out the bag in his hand and starting their way back.

He has to drag Nymphadora for the first half of the walk back, promising her they’ll play outside when they get back home before she starts walking willingly. Although, when they get closer, she breaks away from him, running ahead towards the door. 

“Dora,” He scolds, but he can’t even finish reprimanding her before she trips over her own feet, falling down onto the sidewalk. Regulus rushes up beside her and she immediately starts crying. 

“What happened?” He questions as if he doesn’t already know.

She just keeps crying, Regulus sitting her up so he can see the scrapes on her knees and the bottoms of her hands. He takes a deep breath, he just has to get them back home. 

“Do you want me to carry you?” He asks, Nymphadora nodding as she loudly sobs in the middle of the street. He picks her up, ignoring how heavy she is and walking them back up to the house. He unlocks and opens the door with one hand, going inside and shutting the door as fast as possible so he can stop getting stared at by every adult on the street. He pushes aside his own discomfort for a minute, setting the still screaming kid down on the stairs and taking his shoes off as well as hers, shedding the picnic blanket.

“You’re ok, you’re ok, we’re gonna fix it,” He tries to assure her, having to pick her up and put her on the couch himself. He really doesn’t know what to do, but he decides cleaning it is probably step one. 

He goes into the bathroom, opening the closet and pulling out what looks like a first aid kid. He’s in luck, it is, and he walks back into the living room to kneel in front of her. 

“No!” She kicks him. 

Regulus sighs, “I’m gonna help, ok?” 

“No!” She hits a volume he didn’t know she could. He gets up and turns so he’s facing the other way, closing his eyes and trying to think of a way out of this. 

The candy.

He goes into the kitchen and pulls out the bag of assorted candies, taking out a lollipop from it and putting the bag back, kicking the cabinet closed as he gets up and goes back into the living room. He unwraps it and holds it up.

“Here, if you have this can I help?” He offers, the only sign of compliance being when she takes it from him. She puts it in her mouth and stops screaming, thank God, letting Regulus start to heal up her knees. They’re not scraped too bad, but bad enough he should maybe do something about it. 

He opens the box to immediately see a note taped to the top.

_ Don’t use the healing serum on Dora, she’s not old enough. _

Shit. 

He replaces his original plan with just putting some bandaids on it, deciding that’s enough until Andromeda gets home. She seems pretty content with it, so that’s a success on his part. 

He puts everything back where it was before, taking a seat on the couch next to her. 

“All better?” He rubs her head, Nymphadora nodding, “See, I promised I would help. Can I get your coat off?”

She holds her arms out, which to him means yes, and Regulus manages to shimmy the coat off of her. He takes off his too and sets it next to him, Nymphadora taking that as an apparent invitation to climb into his lap and lean against him. He just laughs, glad he resolved the small crisis they had before. 

Nymphadora takes the lollipop out of her mouth and looks at him, “Are we still playing?”

“Yeah, we can play, finish that first, though,” He answers, Nymphadora putting it back in her mouth and getting up, walking over to the shelf of books and bringing one back. She gets back into his lap and hands it to him. He doesn’t recognize the book at all, but he starts reading anyway.

“Benjy’s Dog House…”

***

“We’re home!” Andromeda’s voice yells from down the hall, Regulus finishing up drying off Nymphadora’s hands before sending her down the hallway. He walks out after her, seeing her already greeting her parents excitedly. 

“Hi Dora,” Andromeda greets, “Did you miss us?”

“Yeah,” She nods, hugging her legs. Ted sets the stuff he’s carrying on the couch before getting his greetings from his daughter, picking her up.

“What happened here?” He asks, pointing at her knees.

“I fell,” She tells him, “But Reglus helped! I’m ok!”

“Good, I’m glad you’re ok,” He tickles her. 

Andromeda looks over to Regulus, “I’m guessing everything went fine?”

“Other than her having a meltdown over going to bed everything was fine. You didn’t  _ mention _ she works herself up to the point where she’s hyperventilating, Andy.”

“She doesn’t  _ normally _ , but the kid likes routine,” Andromeda shrugs, “You’re one to talk there, Reg, you know how many times I talked you down from screaming as a kid because you were sleeping in my bed and not yours?”

“Ok, but this isn’t about me,” Regulus laughs, “It was fine, though, we lived.”

“And she’s pretty happy, so you apparently did a good job,” She looks back at her daughter, “Did you have fun, Dora?”

Nymphadora nods, “Yeah! We went outside and played too!” 

“Oh wow!” Andromeda marvels, looking back to Regulus, “At the park or here?”

“Here,” He answers, “We ate at the park, though.”

“Good, that’s what I was hoping you’d do, get some fresh air,” She gestures for him to follow him, “Here, how about you come sit while I interrogate you.”

Regulus follows her into the living room, both of them sitting on either side of the corner of the sectional, Ted walking over to sit next to Andromeda with Nymphadora on his lap, happily explaining something that happened in the last 20 hours or so.

“So what happened to her knees?” Andromeda asks.

“We were walking home and she fell,” He replies, “I did have to bribe her with candy to get her to stop kicking me but I did manage to put bandages on.”

“Oh, and last night, other than the meltdown did she go down alright?”

“Mhm,” He nods, “Oh, I had to brush her teeth?”

“ _ That’s  _ what I forgot, damnit,” She laughs, “It was bothering me, I knew I forgot something. Well, I’m glad you figured it out, you’re the best. What did you read?”

“Where the Wild Things Are, twice,” He points at the book on the table, “I read that today.”

“Oh, that’s a new one from Ted’s parents, she loves it,” Andromeda tells him, “Everything is very clean, did you do  _ anything _ yesterday?”

“Yeah, we played hide and seek and with the animals. I just cleaned it up before I went to bed.”

“You didn’t have to,” Andromeda argues.

“I did anyway,” He counters, “How was your night?”

“Oh, we didn’t want to come back home,” She laughs, “It was wonderful, thank you so much for watching her.”

“It’s no problem,” He assures her, “We had fun, right, Dora?”

“Yeah!” She chimes in, “And we had pancakes!” 

Andromeda smiles at her daughter, “Did you make Reg get them too.”

“Nooo,” She giggles, Andromeda jokingly rolling her eyes.

“That’s her favorite thing to do, make you get the same thing she has, I have no idea how that happened,” She shakes her head, sighing, “Well, I think I actually have to bring you home.”

“Maybe,” He shrugs, “I do have to see James’ family tomorrow, so as much as I’d love to stay I do need some downtime.”

“That’s completely fair,” She nods, looking over to her daughter, “Dora, Reg is going to go back home, you gotta go say goodbye.”

And Regulus knows exactly how this is going to go.

“No! I want him to stay!”


	97. 10 AM

Regulus holed himself up in the piano for pretty much all of yesterday preparing for James’ family today, with the exception of having to tell James enough details to hold him over until Regulus wanted to explain it more. Even then, he’s still not ready to meet all these people today. At least he has his room to hide in this time.

Sirius and Remus are also spending the morning with him in the piano room, Sirius sitting on the floor painting and Remus wrapped around him. They’ve been very quiet, so Regulus hasn’t had any complaints. Mrs. Potter is using James as help getting ready, which, as much as he likes James, he’s thankful for. 

The first knock on the door comes at 10 am, where the volume of voices grows tenfold. Regulus is almost positive it’s Léo and his family since it’s way too early for anyone else. 

The door opens a moment later, all 3 of them looking back to see James in the doorway, “Mum said you guys have to say hi.”

Regulus looks forward for a moment, suppressing a groan before getting up. Sirius laughs at him, ruffling his hair before playfully pushing him out ahead of him. Regulus walks around the corner, seeing Mr. and Mrs. Potter already greeting everyone. James brings over Haydn to meet Remus first.

“Haydn, this is Remus,” James gestures to Remus, “Remus this is Haydn, now you know someone!”

“Wow, thanks James,” Remus deadpans before looking at Haydn, “It’s nice to meet you.”

“You too,” Haydn replies, looking back as his dad walks up behind him. 

“Brought in  _ more _ kids, Effie?” He yells back, laughing before looking at Remus, “Hi, I’m Léo, I’m James’ uncle.”

“I’m Remus,” He replies, “Nice to meet you.”

“Do you speak French?” He asks, Remus shaking his head. “Oh good, James, you won’t be the only one.”

“I’m not the  _ only  _ one,” James thinks about it for a second, “Yeah, no, I am the only one.”

“I’m glad you’ve figured that out,” Léo laughs, “Anyway, hi Sirius, hi Regulus.”

“Hi,” Sirius greets, Regulus waving. Fiona, Dianna, and Timothée walk up, although Regulus doesn’t get to greet them before Mrs. Potter calls him.

“Regulus,” She gestures for him to walk over, Regulus breaking away from the unfortunately large group to walk over to her. “I had James do this to his room already, but you should go upstairs and lock away anything you don’t want the kids getting at.”

Regulus nods, “Now?”

“Yeah, do that now,” She replies, “Just so it’s already done.”

He nods again, heading upstairs into his room and looking around at everything. He has most of his stuff away anyway, considering he doesn’t have much in the first place. He puts away his Black seal, the one he used to send Cynthia the letter. As much as he’d love to snap it in half he does actually need it. He decides the photos should be safe, they’re far enough back on his dresser that hopefully, anyone looking to cause destruction won’t see them. 

He clips closed his trunk, which has most of his personal stuff in it. He doesn’t really want to go back downstairs, and if he could go unnoticed staying up here he would. He has to restrain himself from locking his door right now and staying here.

He goes back downstairs, seeing Fiona and Léo sitting at the table with Mr. and Mrs. Potter. Mrs. Potter looks up as he walks down. 

“Sirius, Remus, James, and Haydn are all in the piano room dear, if you’re looking for them,” She tells him. Regulus nods before heading into the piano room, which is uncomfortably full. James is sitting on the piano bench, Haydn sitting on the ground in front of him.

James looks up, “Hi Reg!”

“Hi James,” Regulus replies, staring at him until he gets the point to get off of the piano bench. Although, he’s not that in tune.

Sirius looks back, “You’re sitting on the piano bench.”

“Oh shit,” James gets up, “I’m sorry, Reg, I’m leaving.”

“Thank you,” Regulus grabs a seat at the piano, flipping through his book to find something to play while James and Haydn move to sit against the wall. Regulus doesn’t get to pick a piece before someone calls his name.

“Regulus,” Haydn calls his attention over, “I’m sorry, can I ask you something?”

“Sure,” Regulus answers. 

“When did you get glasses? You didn’t have them when I came over on Monday, right?”

He shakes his head, “I got them Thursday.” 

“Ahh, that makes sense,” He nods, “Ok, that’s all I had to ask, thank you.”

Regulus gives him a small affirming smile before going back to picking something before getting frustrated with all the options and getting up to switch the book he’s playing out of to one of his mindless ones. He doesn’t really want to think right now.

The murmuring in the room, except for James who is talking pretty loud, is excessively annoying. He hopes at some point they’ll go upstairs to play Exploding Snap like they seem to do every time and Regulus can decline the offer. 

Half an hour goes by and everyone is still sitting around, although at some point Remus moved to sit beside Sirius instead of behind him, which fortunately decreased the volume of his voice. The door opens and everyone looks back.

Timothée walks in, pushing a screaming Dianna in front of him.

“It’s your turn to watch her,” Timothée tells Haydn over the yelling.

“No!” Dianna screams, “I want Daddy! I don’t want Haydn!”

“What happened Dianna?” James asks, leaning forward to see her.

“No no! I don’t want James!” She kicks away from Timothée and runs out of the room, Timothée sighing.

“Well, it is your turn, but she doesn’t want you,” He looks out the door, “I don’t know what happened, so don’t ask.”

“I figured you didn’t,” Haydn replies, “Why didn’t you just bring her to Dad?”

“I don’t want to go near Mum,” He answers, “She almost killed me this morning, I’m giving that some cool off time.”

“Well now you’re screwed, she’s going to have your head anyway,” He looks out the door before quickly turning back to James, Regulus seeing Fiona walking towards the room.

“What happened?” She questions, “Why was Dianna crying?”

“She wanted to be with Dad,” Timothée explains, “She didn’t want me or Haydn to be anywhere around her.”

“What did you do?” 

“I didn’t do anything!” He shoots back defensively, “She just started yelling at me.”

“You had to have done something for her to be yelling like that,” She looks over to Haydn, “Haydn, do you know?”

He turns to look at her, “No, Tim came in here and she was already yelling.”

Mrs. Potter walks up behind Fiona, putting a hand on her shoulder, “She’s just being fussy, it’s not his fault. Léo calmed her down.”

“Alright, thank you, Effie,” Fiona nods, both of them heading back into the other room. Timothée shuts the door and slides down it.

“I can’t  _ stand _ her,” He groans, “I didn’t do  _ anything _ , she’s 6! She’s going to scream and cry, and I’m her brother, of  _ course _ she hates me! It makes no sense, she’s gonna be like this all afternoon isn’t she?”

“Well, you wound her up this morning,” Haydn points out, “At this point that should be expected.”

Timothée continues to rant, Regulus turning back to the piano, although it’s way too loud in here for him to focus. That’s also  _ way _ too many people, there was a lot before, and Timothée is a very big presence. He tries to think of a way out or at least some kind of reasoning to go back upstairs and lock his door so he doesn’t have to talk to anyone, but he can’t think of one. Nor could he get out anyway, Timothée is leaning against the door.

“Reg,” Sirius calls, Regulus looking over. Sirius subtly nods towards the door, therefore asking either if he wants out or if he wants every else out, both of which are yes. Regulus nods and Sirius puts down the stuff he’s painting with, whispering something to Remus before getting up.

“Alright, I’ll be right back, I have to grab something,” Sirius tells everyone, looking at Regulus, “Come here, Reg, you’re helping.”

Regulus gets up without complaint, shutting the piano lid before following after Sirius because he does not trust the combination in that room. The two of them go upstairs, stopping at the top of them when Sirius turns to him. 

“You’re welcome.”

“Thank you,” Regulus sarcastically replies, although he’s sure Sirius knows he’s actually glad he got him out of that. Sirius ruffles his hair before heading back downstairs, Regulus going back into his room and seriously contemplating locking the door, but he doesn’t. He just grabs a book out of his bag, not really caring what it is, and flops back on his bed. 

He’s happy he didn’t lock the door because someone knocks on it a few minutes later. It opens right after, Mrs. Potter peaking in. 

“Hello dear,” She greets, “I just wanted to see if you came up here, I didn’t see you come back down with Sirius.”

He sits up, “Yeah, I’d just rather be up here.”

“That’s fine, are they all down in the piano room?”

Regulus nods.

“I’ll remind them that room is off limits at some point, especially with the younger ones,” She sighs, “But more people should be showing up soon, I probably won’t make you say hi to everyone but I’ll call you back down when most people are here since the boys will probably want your help watching the kids, alright?”

Regulus silently sighs knowing he gets to hide up here for a little while, “Thank you.”

“No problem dear, just find me if you need anything,” She tells him, Regulus nodding before she shuts the door and Regulus lays back down and continues where he left off for about 2 minutes before his door opens again. 

“Hey Reg,” James pokes his head in, “We’re gonna play Exploding Snap, come on.”

Regulus sighs, “Do I have to?”

“Yeah, come on,” James gestures for him to follow, “It’ll be fun.”

Regulus really really wants to say no. He does not want to play Exploding Snap, nor does he want to do so with more than one person. But it doesn’t look like he’s getting out of this. 

“Fine,” Regulus gets up and follows James into his room, which is a complete mess considering three of them are living there now. 

Haydn is standing in the middle of the room, his arms crossed, “James, we will not fit in this room if you don’t clean it.”

“Is it that bad?” James walks over to the collection of different discarded clothes and papers that seem strategically placed, “Oh we haven’t cleaned this in a few days have we?”

“I told you our room was a mess,” Sirius walks in the room, “Let’s just play in Reg’s room.”

Regulus looks back and shoots Sirius a very aggressive look, Sirius just sticking his tongue out at him. Regulus rolls his eyes and looks back to James for his verdict. 

“Can we, Reg?” James asks, “We won’t touch anything, we just want to play on the floor.”

Regulus suppresses a sigh, “Fine.”

“Yay! Thank you, Reg!” James cheers, Regulus reluctantly turning around and following after Sirius and Remus into his room. Sirius grabs a seat on the ground, Remus sitting next to him. Regulus sits next to Sirius, leaning back against his bed. James and Haydn complete the circle, Haydn next to him and James next to Remus.

“No wait, switch with me,” Sirius says to Remus, “I want to be next to James when I beat his ass.”

“I do not want to be between that,” Remus switches spots with Sirius, James pulling out the cards and dealing everyone in. They start the round, which is really just James and Sirius playing aggressively with a small intermission for the rest of them to play. 

Remus stifles a laugh before playing his card, effectively destroying Sirius’ almost-win. 

“I cannot believe you just did that,” Sirius gawks at him, “Oh you’re so dead, I was  _ so _ close. Don’t you care about me?”

“Of course,” Remus playfully gushes, earning a jab in the side from Sirius, both of them laughing. 

“Well, I’ll pass on the wealth,” Sirius says before throwing a card that also destroys James’ progress. 

James groans, yelling, “What the fuck-”

“James!” Mrs. Potter scolds from downstairs. 

“Sorry Mum!” He yells back, looking to Haydn, “Can you shut that door?”

Haydn leans back and shuts the door, waiting to hear it click before he sits back up. 

“Thank you,” James looks back at Sirius, “We sleep in the same room, I can kill you.”

“But you won’t,” Sirius chirps back, “Now play, go.”

The game falls back into a slightly steadier rhythm, James, Remus, and Sirius periodically teasing one another quite violently before James finally wins. 

“Yeah! Take that losers!” James exclaims, “Even after Sirius tried to fuck me over.”

“It’s really only the three of us who care,” Sirius remarks, “I think Haydn and Reg are just filling blank space.”

“No, I’m a little confused but watching you three fight is pretty funny,” Haydn comments. 

“And Reg is here because I think you forced him,” Sirius finishes, winking at Regulus, “So I think that means you should deal again so I can beat you this time.”

“Not a chance,” James shakes his head, dealing out another round of cards. 

Regulus has a horrible feeling he’ll be here for a while. 


	98. Just an Accident

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> it's that time where i remind you i don't speak french! i'm so sorry to anyone who does i just use google translate.

Regulus is stuck playing goddamn Exploding Snap for another hour, at some point Timothée decided to join in. He’s been surprisingly respectful, so Regulus can’t complain any more than he has been. 

Regulus hears an increase in the amount of noise coming from downstairs, enough so that he’s sure more than just Esmé, Sean, and Lucette. Someone comes up the stairs, the door opening and Léo peaking in. 

“Come say hi boys,” He looks up to Sirius, Remus, and Regulus, “Effie said you three don’t have to if you don’t want to.”

Regulus nods, absolutely not going down there if he doesn’t have to. Sirius and Remus, although, get up and follow the rest of them downstairs, leaving Regulus in his room alone. It goes quiet again, save for the loud French greetings downstairs, Regulus leaning his head back and sighing. He’s not ready for today, but he doesn’t really have a choice.

He sits back up when he hears a stampede of footsteps come up the stairs, everyone entering the room along with two new additions: Embla and Alanna. He’s not quite sure where Dorita is, but he guesses she’s probably downstairs with Dianna. Everyone takes their seats again, Alanna sitting between James and Haydn and Haydn telling Embla to sit next to him and Regulus. 

Alanna waves at him, “Hi Regulus.”

Regulus waves back, keeping one eye on a fascinated Embla next to him. He’s afraid she’s going to fixate on something like she did in Haydn’s room, and Regulus would rather all of his stuff stay in one place. 

They only get one round in before more people show up, Léo yelling upstairs for them to go and greet them. Regulus once again assumes he’s not included and doesn’t follow after them. Another moment alone, and remembering last time they were over he’ll take as many of those as he can get. 

The group comes back up even larger, which Regulus is really starting to loathe. They lost Embla but gained two triplets and Sylvia, which is not an even trade. Sylvia sits where Embla was, Francis banging on James’ head like a drum and Andrien sitting in Haydn’s lap. He only identifies which is which because they’re dressed differently this time.

“Do you want to play, Sylvia?” James offers, Sylvia shaking her head. James deals them all in again, though they don’t get to start before they’re interrupted by Mrs. Potter coming up the stairs. 

“Why are you all in Regulus’ room?” She asks.

“James’ room is a mess,” Haydn answers.

Mrs. Potter sighs, “James.”

“I’m sorry! I forgot to clean it,” He apologizes, “I was in the middle of something when you told me, I had to finish that first and then I forgot.”

She shakes her head, “It’ll be cleaned by tomorrow so I can do laundry, right?”

“Yes! It will definitely be!” He nods. 

“It better be,” She playfully threatens, “Now don't play your game in here, go downstairs so you can make sure the kids don’t tear the house down.”

“Ok, we’re relocating,” James collects up the cards, everyone getting up as Mrs. Potter goes back downstairs. Regulus reluctantly follows, trailing after the rest of the group. They go all the way downstairs, the room already filled with activity. James walks over and claims them a spot in the corner of the room, everyone sitting back down like they were before. Although, being downstairs is an immediate invitation into anything the younger kids want you to do.

“James James!” Dorita comes running up holding out a box with some game in it, the name Regulus doesn’t recognize, “Come play!” 

“I’m playing with this right now, I’ll play later,” James answers, but she doesn’t walk away, “Not now, Dor.”

“No, you have to play now!” She insists, “Come on!”

“Go play with Dianna or something,” He brushes her off, “She wants to play with you.”

“No, she doesn’t,” Dorita shakes her head, “You need to.”

“Just play with her, James, we’ll play later,” Haydn cuts in.

“Fine, but Sirius is playing too.”

“What?” Sirius barely gets to ask before James is dragging him off to where Dorita decides it is best to play. Timothée and Alanna get up and leave too, apparently, the game was the only thing keeping them there. The circle shrinks to just Regulus, Sylvia, Haydn, Andrien, and Remus. Francis ran after James when he left. 

“Au revoir James!” Andrien calls after him, waving. _Bye James!_

“So how are you both doing?” Haydn asks, looking to Remus, “Did James properly prepare you for the chaos?”

“I don’t think I could have been prepared,” Remus shakes his head, “I have a bad track record with kids, they don’t generally like me.”

“Our family is pretty relaxed, I’m sure none of them will give you a problem,” Haydn replies, “Except Emmy, but she gives everyone a problem.”

“Not me!” Andrien looks up at him, “Je ne suis pas un problem.” _I’m not a._

"That's right, but it’s ‘Je ne suis pas un problème’, Andrien,” Haydn corrects before looking back to Remus, “Yeah, if any of them get on your nerves James and I can deal with it. They like pretty much everyone.”

“I trust you,” Remus nods, going to say something else but getting cut off by someone walking up and poking him.

“Hey hey- uhhh,” She puzzles for a second, “Quel est votre nom?” _What is your name?_

“She asked what your name is,” Haydn tells him, “Speak English, Dianna, he doesn’t speak French.”

“Oh,” She pauses a second, “What’s your name?”

“Remus,” He answers. 

“Hi Remus!” She smiles, “Do you want to play?”

“Um, yeah, sure,” He nods, Haydn stopping him before he can get up. 

“How about you bring it over here?” Haydn suggests, “You can play with Remus here.”

“Ok,” She goes off and brings back the Candyland box. She takes it out and starts talking to Remus, teaching him how to play. 

“So Regulus,” Haydn starts, “How are things with you?”

Regulus shrugs, “Alright.”

“Did anyone tell you what we do today?”

Regulus shakes his head, he doesn’t know of anything they do. 

“We normally have an Easter egg hunt, which just consists of the kids running around like maniacs,” Haydn explains, “We normally get assigned kids to make sure they don’t run away because Aunt Effie’s yard is asking for someone to get lost. You get to take some eggs too if you want, though, as long as no one gets hurt.”

“When?” Regulus asks. 

“Normally we get sent upstairs around 2,” He answers, “They lock us up there and take way too long to set things out, and then everyone gets sent running. You only have to watch everyone when they’re outside, and you only have to watch them if they’re under 6 or so. Our family likes to micromanage if you can’t tell.”

Regulus nods along in affirmation, watching as Sylvia moves somehow closer to Haydn. Haydn sighs and looks over at her.

“Why don’t you go play with Dianna or Emmy?” He suggests, “You don’t have to stay with me.”

She shakes her head, pouting at his offer. He wraps an arm around her, looking back up at Regulus and silently sighing, shaking his head. 

“Regulus,” Remus looks back, “What is she saying?”

Regulus looks at Dianna, who repeats to him, “He has to prenez une carte!” _Pick a card._

“She wants you to pick a card,” Regulus translates. 

Remus looks at Dianna, confused, “I did, see?” He holds up the card. 

“No no,” She shakes her head, “It’s ripped, prenez une carte.” She points at the pile in the middle of the board. 

“Oh, ok, I’ll pick another one,” He nods, “Thank you, Regulus.”

Regulus gives him a small smile, looking back to see Andrien walking towards him. He reaches out for Regulus’ glasses, Regulus moving backward. 

“Hey, no Andrien,” Haydn scolds, kept in one place by Sylvia holding onto him. Andrien doesn’t stop, though, he really wants to see the glasses.

“No touching them,” Regulus pushes his hand back, “Just look, don’t touch.”

“I want I want,” He bounces up and down on his knees. 

“You can just look,” Regulus tells him, “No touching.”

“Why?” He whines, reaching out again. Regulus gently pushes his hands back again. 

“I can’t see if you have them,” He explains, “They help me see.”

Andrien tilts his head, “Why?”

“Why do they help?” He clarifies, Andrien nodding. “The glass is special.”

Andrien giggles, “Verre special! I want verre special!”

“Maybe you’ll get some one day,” He replies, Andrien smiling at him. His attention gets caught with someone calling for him across the room, running off to go see whoever called him. 

Haydn laughs, “Wow, you’re good, how on Earth did you get him not to rip them off your face?”

Regulus shrugs, “I just guessed, I don’t know.”

“That’s-“ 

Haydn is cut off by something, rather someone, hitting the ground, followed by immediately screaming. Every head in the room shoots over, seeing Embla on the floor, Timothée staring wide-eyed from the top of the stairs at her. 

“Let go, Sylvia,” Haydn quickly pushes her off before rushing over to Embla, along with James going just as fast. Haydn looks back and gives Timothée instructions, trying to hold off almost every kid in the room who is coming over to investigate. 

“Reg, Pads, Moony,” James yells, “Can each of you watch one of them so they’re not stacked right here?”

Regulus gets up and walks over, taking Andrien’s hand and tapping Dianna on the shoulder.

“Go back to playing with Remus,” He tells her, “She’s ok, Haydn and James will help.”

She nods, although her eyes are wide like she’s about to cry. She heads back over to Remus and Regulus walks both Simon and Andrien, Sirius having a hold on Dorita and Francis, back over to where he was sitting. Lucien comes downstairs, trailed by both Alanna and Timothée. He immediately goes over to tend to his daughter, Regulus trying to chorale 2 3-year-olds into staying by him.

“Simon no,” He grabs back onto his hand, “Come sit for a second.”

“No no Emmy,” He shakes his head, “I want to see.”

“You can see her in a minute, but you have to sit right now,” He maintains, Simon sitting down right where he is. Andrien has made himself pretty content in Regulus’ lap, and Sylvia doesn’t look like she wants anything to do with that. Remus seems to be struggling with Dianna, though.

“No no no,” Remus pleads, “Stay here, no-”

“No I can help!” She insists, James grabbing her and turning her back around as he walks back towards Sirius. Lucien takes Embla upstairs, who is clearly not happy about any of this. Haydn and Timothée are in a heated back and forth, Alanna’s eyes bouncing between the two of them. Someone starts walking down the stairs, Haydn and Timothée freezing until they both sigh and Mrs. Potter walks into the room. 

“What happened down here?” She asks, looking around at the confused and concerned faces around the room, “Why was Embla crying?”

“Tim didn’t see her coming down the stairs, he bumped into her and she fell backward,” Haydn explains, Mrs. Potter looking over to an _extremely_ guilty Timothée. Regulus didn’t know he could express that much emotion.

“Oh,” She nods, looking to Timothée, “It was just a mistake, dear, don’t feel bad about it. She’s young, she’ll be fine.”

Timothée sighs, “I know, I just should have been looking. My mum is going to kill me.”

“I’ll make sure she doesn’t,” Mrs. Potter assures him, “I know you didn’t mean to. Is everything else alright down here?”

“Yeah, we’re fine, thanks Aunt Effie,” Haydn replies. Mrs. Potter smiles before heading back upstairs, Haydn running a hand through his hair. He looks back at James, “We’re really not doing a good job today, are we?”

“Hey, don’t count us out yet,” James counters, “We’ve got lots of time to improve.”

“Or get worse.”

“Well, if you look at it that way we’re never getting any better,” James teases, the room falling quiet a moment before James breaks it, “Do any of you want to do something?”

“House!” Dianna exclaims.

“No, no house, we played it last time,” James replies, “Think of something else and we’ll play that.”

“No, house!” She presses. 

“Yeah,” Dorita chimes in, “We should play house.”

“You guys can play house,” James replies, “I am not doing anything like that.”

“No let’s play!” Dorita whines, “We want to!”

“I’m not stopping you, here,” James gets up, dragging Sirius with him to sit over on the wall, “Pretend I’m not even here- Actually, pretend I’m dead. We died.”

“Oh,” She pauses a second, “Haydn, are you playing?”

“No, I’m gonna sit with James,” He gets up, “You guys can play, though, we’ll just watch.” 

“Simon, Andrien, Sylvia” Dorita calls, “Come on, we’re playing!” 

Simon gets up and walks over to the two, although Sylvia and Andrien show no sign of getting up. Dorita tries again.

“Come on!” She whines, “Come play! We need to play, yeah?”

“I’m ok,” Andrien replies, continuing to fiddle with Regulus’ watch. Sylvia goes to sit next to Haydn again. Remus moves to sit next to Sirius, and Regulus decides maybe he should join. 

He taps Andrien on the shoulder, “Let’s sit against the wall.”

Andrien gets up and Regulus walks over to sit against the wall next to Sylvia, Andrien resuming his seat in Regulus’ lap again. Haydn leans forward and laughs. 

“He really likes you,” He comments, “What did you give him?”

Regulus shrugs, looking down at Andrien somehow trying to take off his watch. Haydn looks over to Sylvia and his face saddens.

“Sylvia, why don’t you go play with them?” Haydn suggests again, “You don’t have to stick with me, come on.”

She shakes her head, “I don’t want to.”

“Go play, you can’t cling to me,” He urges, Sylvia sitting back and letting go but not leaving. “Come on, go play with Dor and Dianna.”

She crosses her arms and stares at him, and Regulus hears her start to cry. Haydn sighs, rubbing his face.

“Come on Sylvia,” He looks back at James, “Can you get Diane?”

James nods and heads upstairs, Sylvia rejecting any kind of advance Haydn is trying to make to comfort her. Andrien, however, doesn’t even notice his sister upset. He’s too enthralled with what he’s doing. 

Diane comes downstairs, “Oh, what’s wrong sweetheart? Come here, go upstairs with Dad, I’ll be up in a minute.”

Sylvia gets up and walks upstairs, her mother rubbing her shoulder. She walks over to Haydn.

“Sorry, she’s not in the best mood today, I don’t know what happened,” Diane explains, “She didn’t want to come today either which makes no sense because it’s not like it isn’t anything we haven’t done before. I think it was the boys this morning, they were all bent out of shape for some reason and that put her off.”

“The three of them have seemed fine,” Haydn puzzles.

“Yeah, they got over it,” She nods, “I mean, they’re young, they bounce back. She’s in deep opposition about being here, though, I’m hoping Percy can fix that because I certainly can’t.”

“He’s oddly good at that,” Haydn comments, “I was trying to get her to stop hanging on me but apparently that wasn’t the right answer.”

“Yeah, not when she’s upset,” Diane laughs, her attention caught by Andrien.

“Mum Mum!” He calls her, “Look at the bracelet!” His accent seems to merge between English and French as he holds up Regulus’ wrist to show her the watch he’s been fiddling with.

“That’s a watch,” She corrects, “And that’s his watch, it’s on his wrist.”

“I’m looking,” He answers.

Diane laughs, “I’m sorry Regulus, he seems to like your watch.”

“He almost took his glasses,” Haydn adds, “Regulus is like a miracle worker, though.”

“Aunt Euphemia said you were the one with the talent for working with kids,” She says, “Honestly, it’s a gift because that one was throwing a fit this morning and he’s sitting quietly in your lap.”

Regulus gives her a small smile, looking down at the boy in his lap. They’re interrupted by Léo peaking downstairs, “Diane.”

“Yeah?” She turns around.

“Do you want to set up for the eggs now? Emmy asked about thirteen times,” He asks quietly enough the younger kids didn’t hear it, “Percy said Sylvia was up to it but only if, and I quote, ‘The nice friend is with her’.” 

“Which one of them is that?” Diane asks, “There’s three.”

Léo shrugs, “Do you want me to go and ask?”

“Yeah, do that and we’ll corral them upstairs,” She nods, looking back to the 5 of them against the wall, “Are you all ready for this one?”

“No,” Haydn and James both answer.

“Good!” She turns to the room, “Do you guys want to the egg hunt now?”

And every one of them cheers yes. 


	99. Lost

“Now, you all just go upstairs and don’t come back down until we’re done, alright?” Diane says to the group of overly eager kids in front of her before looking up at the teenagers standing behind them, “You’re welcome to hide them in your rooms, just make sure no one dies.”

“We got it, don’t worry,” James assures her, “Come on, guys, let’s go.” 

Dianna, Dorita, and Embla go up the stairs first, Haydn chasing after them. James sends Remus and Sirius upstairs before he and Regulus make sure the triplets and Sylvia go with everyone. Timothée and Alanna trail after all of them, clearly uninterested in what’s going on. 

Regulus walks Andrien into his room, going in to see Sylvia, Haydn, and Embla already in there. Sylvia is standing by the door and Haydn is trying not to have Embla touch everything in Regulus’ room. 

“Hi Regulus,” He greets, immediately drawn back to Embla, “No, Emmy.”

“I want to see!” She argues, reaching up to try and take one of the constellation paintings off the wall.

“You can see it from the ground, that’s how  _ art _ works,” Haydn replies, sighing and looking back at Regulus, “I’m trying to keep her from touching everything you own but that it’s really going well.”

Regulus just shrugs in response, Andrien dragging him over to his bed. Regulus sits down and helps Andrien onto it. He looks around the room at everything, Regulus keeping an eye on the competition in the corner.

“Emmy no-” 

Haydn is cut off by the door opening, Timothée and Alanna walking in.

“We got kicked out of James’ room,” Timothée tells everyone when he walks in, “They almost made us bring Simon but I don’t think you would have appreciated that.”

“No, not at all, actually,” Haydn answers, Embla forcing him to give her a piggyback ride. Whatever keeps her from touching stuff. 

“Well, you’re welcome,” He replies, going to sit up against the back wall with Alanna. The room is surprisingly quiet, except for Haydn going back and forth with Embla and the murmuring of Alanna and Timothée. 

A couple of minutes later, Regulus keeping Andrien from throwing himself off the bed, the door, which Timothée closed, opens. 

“Who is in here?” Mrs. Potter asks, stepping into the room, “Oh, I see, the three of them stuck you all in here.”

“I came here by choice,” Haydn corrects, “James’ room is a wreck.”

“Having 3 messy boys in there does that,” She laughs, “I yell at James most often but they’re all the problem. Regulus is the only clean one in this house.”

Regulus smiles at her, Andrien, though, taking that as an invitation to join in.

“Auntie look!” He grabs Regulus’ wrist and holds it up for her, “Bracelet!” 

“It’s a watch, chère,” She corrects, “It tells you the time.” 

“The time,” He repeats, holding it up to Regulus, “Quelle heure?”  _ What time? _

Regulus looks at his watch, “Il est une heure.”  _ It’s one o’clock. _

“Oh,” He answers, looking up at Mrs. Potter and repeating, “Il est une heure.”

She laughs, “That’s right. Has he been annoying you all afternoon?”

Regulus shrugs, “It’s fine. He’s calmer than Dora.”

“It’s all relative, I know what you mean,” She replies.

“I told Diane this too, but I totally thought he was going to rip Regulus’ glasses off,” Haydn chimes in, “Andrien likes to touch everything that is on other people.”

“Mhm, don’t let them do that,” She says to Regulus, “Although I trust you, I know you know that.” 

He nods, looking over her shoulder to see Léo walking in.

He quickly shakes her shoulder, “Boo!”

She jumps before turning back and crossing her arm, “What are you five?! I’m old, you’re not allowed to do that!”

“Oh, hush Effie, I scared you, though,” He laughs, “Diane said they’re pretty much done. Lucien hid most of them, so the kids are never finding anything.”

“Oh wonderful,” She deadpans.

“Maman also asked why she hasn’t gotten to greet your youngest,” He adds, “She’s a little upset.”

Mrs. Potter sighs, “Tell her he’ll be right down, I don’t know why she needs to talk to him but alright.”

“You know her, she has to greet everyone,” Léo replies, “But I’ll tell her.”

Léo goes back downstairs and Mrs. Potter looks back at Regulus, “Ma maman needs to say hi to you, apparently, come with me, dear. You can bring Andrien if he doesn’t want to let go of you.”

Regulus reluctantly nods, getting off the bed. Andrien insists he needs to follow, so Regulus helps him off and guides him downstairs. Lucette is fine, she’s just a lot and Regulus would rather not face the grandiose greeting that involves lots of hugs. He’s not a fan of any of that. 

“Maman,” Mrs. Potter calls, Lucette turning around on the couch.

“Oh! Regulus, ça me fait plaisir de te voir!” She gets up and walks over to him, giving him a hug and a kiss on both cheeks.  _ It’s nice to see you! _

He just forces a small smile, hoping she takes that as enough greeting. She doesn’t of course.

“No need to be so, ah, stiff,” She pats him on the shoulder, “I greet you like family, don’t look scared.”

“Désolé,” He apologizes.  _ Sorry. _

“Arrière-mère!” Andrien taps her, “Look!”  _ Great-Grandmother. _

He does the same thing he’s done a couple of times, grabbing Regulus’ hand and showing her his watch too. 

“Il est, uhh,” Andrien looks up at Regulus, “Quelle heure?”  _ It is. What time? _

“Il est une heure,” He reminds him, Andriel repeating that back to Lucette, who laughs.  _ It’s one o’clock.  _

“That’s right,” She rubs his head, looking up as kids start to funnel downstairs. She looks back at Mrs. Potter, watching from by the couch, “Où vont-ils?”  _ Where are they going? _

“Egg hunt, Maman, what we were just setting out,” She reminds her.

“Ah, oui oui,” She nods, looking down to Andrien, “Go look with your cousins, go.”

Andrien runs off after Simon, the two of them seemingly grouping up. Regulus doesn’t get to leave, though.

“Viens ici, come sit,” Lucette encourages, having him follow her over to the couch and awkwardly taking a seat next to her. “I got to speak to your brother, but never you. Euphemia tells me you play the piano?”

He nods.

“Finally getting use out of this one,” She laughs, pointing back to the piano room, “When did you learn?”

“I started when I was 3,” He answers.

“Oh mon Dieu! Très jeune!” She taps him on the leg, and Regulus stiffens, “How old are you now?”  _ Oh my goodness! Very young! _

“15.”

“Ah, so you’re older than Timothée,” She nods, “5th year?”

He nods again.

“Do you take music?” She questions, her accent weighing heavily on the word ‘music’.

He nods a third time.

“You must be the best there,” She smiles, Regulus just shrugging. He looks over as Lucien walks over and takes a seat in the sofa chair across from them.

“Are you questioning him now, Maman?” He laughs, “These poor boys are probably terrified.”

“Non, Lucien,” She dismisses, “They’re Euphemia’s, I don’t scare them.”

“Well, he looks a little scared of you,” Lucien points out, Regulus immediately aware of how tense he is but completely powerless in fixing it. 

“Lucien, manières!” She chides, “Nothing is wrong with him, we’re talking.”  _ Manners! _

“I’m just pointing it out,” He holds his hands up in surrender, “Continue, continue.”

She shoots him an annoyed look before looking back to Regulus, “You play Quidditch, oui?”

He nods.

“I never understood it, do you play what James plays?” She questions, looking over to Lucien, “What is it called?”

“Seeker,” Lucien answers.

“Oui oui,” She agrees, “Seeker?”

He nods again. He’s preferring these yes or no questions.

“Maman, remember James telling you about him?” Lucien reminds her, “How he plays against Regulus?”

“Non, he did not,” She denies.

“Yes, he did,” Lucien counters, looking over at Regulus, “I’ve heard you’re quite the flier too, you give James some competition.”

Regulus shrugs again.

“He told me you beat him, back in the fall. I didn’t go to Hogwarts but so I’ve heard Gryffindor and Slytherin are rivals.”

Regulus nods in agreement. 

“You seem a little safer than James, though. He’s a hazard on his feet.”

“Don’t let Regulus fool you, he is a magnet for injuries,” Mrs. Potter comments, walking up behind him, “A broken wrist and a severe concussion in a month.”

“Oh mon Dieu, you’re worse than Léo,” Lucette laughs, “He got hurt all the time. Broke a number of bones.”

“Léo did it to himself, though,” Mrs. Potter points out, “Regulus just has unfortunate luck, he’s not like James.”

“We couldn’t take another James,” Lucien shakes his head, “It’d be chaos around here, he’s already converting Francis.”

“Andrien has a certain love for Regulus, I don’t know where it came from,” Mrs. Potter puts a hand on Regulus’ shoulder, finally a gesture he’s comfortable with. 

“I got to see,” Lucette responds, “He showed me Regulus’ watch.”

“He did the same to me and to Diane, he’s fascinated with it,” Mrs. Potter rubs Regulus’ shoulder, “And his glasses, but those he’s not allowed to play with.”

“If it’s on someone else, he wants it,” Lucien says, “That’s just-“

“Reg! Reg,” James runs inside, completely out of breath and clearly worried, Francis in his arms, “Can you come here?”

He looks over his shoulder for permission, Mrs. Potter picking her hand up, “Go with them, it’s fine.”

He nods and heads after James outside, seeing everyone running around like mad. James turns around, “We need your help, we can’t find Andrien.”

Regulus stares at him in slight shock, wondering how they lost someone. The rest of the younger kids seem to not know what’s happening. Léo walks out of the door a moment later, Dianna dragging him out. 

“Dianna, that’s where you went,” James sighs, although the tension doesn’t ease from his face, “Hey Uncle Léo.”

“You lost someone?” He questions, “Who?”

“Andrien, but we got it,” James assures him. 

“You better,” Léo threatens, “I’ll give you 5 minutes before I have to tell Percy and Diane, who was watching him?”

“Haydn, I think,” James answers, “Regulus would have been but mémé took him to talk to.”

“Right, but that’s not an excuse to lose  _ anyone _ ,” Léo points out, “I’ll talk to Haydn after, you need to find him.”

“We will, we will,” James nods, “I’ll find you when we do.”

Léo forces James to give him Francis, waving Dianna off to continue running around and going back inside. James looks back when Haydn runs up, “What’d he say?”

“I think you’re in deep shit,” James replies, “He said we just have to find him.”

“Shit,” Haydn breathes, “Shit shit shit my mum is going to kill me. Damnit!”

“It’s ok, calm down,” James assures him, “You’ll be fine, just breathe, let’s just find him.”

Haydn nods, but the clear panic on his face doesn’t fade. He heads off in another direction, James doing the same thing and gesturing for Regulus to follow him. They go a little closer to the small pitch in the backyard and James points out behind it.

“That’s the only place we haven’t looked or are already looking, would you mind checking?” James asks, Regulus nodding and heading off towards the wooded area. 

He keeps his head on a swivel, looking for anywhere that a toddler could be hiding. He walks down and up, repeating the pattern over and over until he hears soft crying coming from a little ways away. He walks in that direction, going slow enough to hear where it’s coming from. Finally, he hears it right in front of him, circling a particularly big tree to see Andrien curled up in a hole in it, softly crying while repeating quiet calls for his mum and dad. He doesn’t see Regulus at first. 

“Andrien,” Regulus kneels down, “Andrien, you’re alright.” 

He looks up, immediately getting up and rushing into Regulus’ arms, clinging to him and sobbing. Regulus picks him up and stands back up, rubbing his back and assuring him he’s safe while he walks out of the woods. James sees him first, his face and stature relaxing immediately. 

“Haydn!” James yells, Regulus looking over to see Haydn turn around, eyes landing on Andrien. He smiles, although Regulus doesn’t buy that he’s not still panicking. James runs up to him, “Where was he?”

“In some hole in a tree,” Regulus answers, pointing behind him, “Back there.”

Haydn, who is walking up from the other side, forces out, “He’s ok?” Regulus knows he’s still worried, and he’s pretty sure it’s about how his mother is going to feel about this.

“Mhm,” Regulus nods, “Just a little shaken.”

“Good,” He nods, crossing his arms tightly over his chest. 

“Here, let’s go back, it’s been about 5 minutes so we should be alright,” James gestures for them to follow, all of them heading back inside to see most of the kids sitting on the ground, trading candy from the eggs they found. Remus and Sirius have their own little stash in the corner, sharing some with Sylvia, who is sitting next to Remus. 

“Haydn Léo Fawley!” Fiona gets up from where she’s sitting on the couch, “Venez avec moi!”  _ Come with me! _

Haydn follows after her, both of them going out the front door. Haydn keeps his head down and his shoulders folded in the entire time. Regulus doesn’t get a chance to analyze what happened before his attention is drawn away by Percy and Diane walking up to him. 

“Here, let me see him, thank you so much,” Diane says as she takes Andrien from Regulus. Andrien wraps himself around her, Percy and Diane starting to calm him down. Regulus decides to follow James over to the corner where Sirius and Remus are chatting. 

“Come sit, Reg,” James pats the spot next to him as he sits down next to Sirius. Regulus grabs a seat, promptly handed a piece of candy by Sirius.

He shakes his head, “No thank you.”

“Take it, Reg,” Sirius insists, Regulus taking it and promptly putting it down in front of him. He can’t eat that right now, he’s too busy waiting for Haydn to come back in. He knows how that conversation goes  _ and _ he knows how it’s going to end. 

Sirius leans over and whispers something to Remus, who playfully pushes him in response. Sirius laughs, looking back over to Regulus and James, “So what tragedy happened while we were in here?”

“We f- lost a kid,” James sighs, “Haydn and I were trying to watch Dianna, Embla, and the triplets at the same time and Andrien wandered off into the woods.”

“How on Earth did you do that?” Sirius questions, “We kept an eye on everyone we had to just fine.”

“No, that doesn’t  _ count _ ,” James argues, “All you had to do was watch Sylvia and she’s not  _ running from you _ .”

“Ok and?” Remus laughs, “Sorry we chose correctly.”

“Well I didn’t have a choice,” James counters, “Don’t attack me.”

Regulus hears the front door open, immediately getting up and walking around the corner, ignoring James asking where he’s going. He sees Haydn walking in behind Fiona, who looks like she’s on fire. Haydn, on the other hand, is practically folded in on himself.

Regulus walks up next to him, gesturing for him to follow him upstairs. Regulus leads him up into his room, savoring also getting to be alone. He knows he would also want to be saved in this scenario, though, so he morally has no choice but to pay it forward. 

Haydn walks over and takes a seat on his bed, Regulus closing the door behind him. Regulus takes a hesitant seat next to him, wanting to ask if he needs help calming down from the  _ very _ panicked state he’s working himself into. Although, Haydn beats him to it.

“I’m alright,” He assures him “Give me a minute.”

Regulus nods, settling for just sitting next to him. Regulus knows what it feels like, he completely understands just wanting someone next to him. 

So he doesn’t say anything, he doesn’t have to.


End file.
